The World Food Program warns of a "devastating famine" in Yemen

ADEN, Yemen - (Xinhua) - The United Nations World Food Program (WFP) warned Monday of a "devastating famine" in Yemen, where a bloody conflict is raging for the seventh year in a row.

The program said in a statement that it "is working to increase the level of food aid in the worst hunger centers in Yemen in an attempt to prevent a devastating famine."

"About 500 thousand people are already living in conditions similar to famine, and 5 million people are exposed to direct danger," he said, warning that his ability "to continue the response until the end of the year remains unconfirmed."

The UN program received $ 947 million from donors, while it needs at least $ 1.9 billion in 2021 to avoid famine in Yemen, according to the statement.

The statement quoted the representative and country director of the World Food Program in Yemen, Laurent Pokera, as saying, "The fragility of the ongoing situation in Yemen, which was exacerbated by the continuing factors driving food insecurity, made Yemen extremely vulnerable to the exacerbation of hunger levels and conditions leading to famine."

"The escalating conflict, economic decline, high global commodity prices and the Coronavirus pandemic have contributed to an alarming increase in the level of acute hunger over the past year," he added.

"The program urgently needs sustainable financing, otherwise any progress that has been made will evaporate and needs will rapidly increase in an unpredictable and challenging operating environment," Boquira emphasized.

The World Food Program supports nearly 13 million people with emergency food assistance, and 3.3 million children and mothers with nutritional supplements to treat and prevent malnutrition.

1.55 million schoolchildren also receive nutritious snacks daily in schools, according to the statement.

Yemen has been witnessing a bloody conflict between government forces and the Houthis since late 2014, which has caused "the worst humanitarian crisis in the world," according to the United Nations classification.