Turkish Red Crescent provides food aid in Yemen

By Said Ibicioglu

LAHIJ, Yemen

A Turkish aid organization on Friday distributed 500 parcels of food aid in Yemen’s southern city of Lahij.

The Turkish Red Crescent distributed the aid to people who had fled their home in Yemen’s coastal city of al-Hudaydah due to the conflict there.

According to Yemen’s official SABA news agency, Ahmad at-Turki, the governor of Lahij; Kerem Kinik, the head of the Turkish Red Crescent; and Jamal Belfakiya, the general coordinator of the Yemen Humanitarian Aid High Committee, distributed the aid.

At-Turki and Belfakiya praised the Turkish Red Crescent’s support in the region.

Kinik, for his part, said that Turkey will continue to provide assistance to Yemen.

According to data from the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), some 17,350 families were forced to flee their homes from al-Hudaydah between June and July.

Al-Hudaydah is a major lifeline for Yemen's beleaguered civilian population with significant amounts of humanitarian aid flowing through the port city.

Yemen has been dogged by conflict since 2014, when Houthi rebels overran much of the country, including the capital Sana’a, forcing the government to take up temporary residence in the coastal city of Aden.

In 2015, Saudi Arabia and several of its Arab allies launched a massive air campaign in Yemen aimed at rolling back Houthi gains.

While the Saudi-led coalition has succeeded in wresting some territory back from the Houthis, the Shia rebel group remains firmly ensconced in Sanaa and in several other parts of the country.