Heavy rains hit IDP camp in Sanaa, adding to their misery
Yemen's internally displaced not only suffered because of the heavy rainfall but also could not celebrate Eid al-Fitr as international humanitarian assistance has been mostly suspended.
SANAA, Yemen — As Muslims around the world celebrated Eid al-Fitr, Yemen’s internally displaced persons (IDPs) were forced to live in the open in Sanaa’s largest IDP camp under difficult conditions and in the absence of the most basic necessities. The heavy rains that flooded the region in late May, including the capital Sanaa, increased their suffering.
Ali Yahya Mohammed told Al-Monitor that he was forced to leave his home in the city of Saada, northern Yemen, when the Saudi-led coalition launched its offensive in March 2015.
Mohammed arrived at the Dharwan camp, 30 kilometers (19 miles) north of Sanaa, where the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) provided him with three tents and all due services, including money. But recently OCHA has had to reduce support to the IDPs in light of the growing number of people in the camp, thus affecting Mohammed, his wife and their 10 children who live in the tents that need ongoing maintenance and extra fabric to protect them from the heavy rains.
On May 31, the UNHCR Operational Update on Yemen reported there were “3.65 [million] displaced since March 2015” where “more than 80% have been displaced more than a year” with 1.28 million IDP returnees.
