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Yemen Putschists Block Aid from Entering War-Torn Country | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Media ID: 55362961
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hildren play at a camp for internally displaced people near Sanaa, Yemen, August 10, 2016. REUTERS


Jeddah- Coup militiamen in Yemen stopped two medical cargoes from entering the war-torn country, sending them back to Djibouti, sources said.

Two jets packed with humanitarian relief were also denied access despite that the Saudi-led coalition granting them the green light for landing in Sanaa. The denial of access of relief and medical aid exacerbated the humanitarian conditions for civilians trapped in Yemen’s warzones.

Coup militants, namely composed of Iran-allied Houthis and former president Ali Abdullah Saleh supporters, have laid siege to many Yemen cities in their aim to push forward with their plans to overtake government and topple the constitutionally elected authority.

Saleh loyalists and Houthis insurgents have shown no responsiveness or cooperation towards humanitarian shipments, flown cargoes or land convoys. In the aftermath, many Yemenis now face starvation, spread of disease and high risks of mortality.

Putschists have been using civilians as a pressure card to advance their political and military agenda.

Insurgency sources confirmed that Houthis gunmen have intentionally zeroed in and locked their grip on humanitarian missions sent to lockdown areas—the coup chooses to be selective with granting access to humanitarian aid, allowing only a few governments to send aid, such as chief ally, Iran.

Iran-aligned Houthis impose full control over aid as an extension to the insurgency’s domination over the country.

More so, coup militias control incoming aid as a smuggling mechanism to regulate receiving Iran-sent arms support.

The turn down of aid comes only days after the earth-shattering expository United Nations report on the humanitarian situation in Yemen resting on an alarming low, which warns also the deteriorating humanitarian conditions in Houthi-controlled areas such as Hajjah, Saada and Taiz.

The coup has led to a civil war now responsible for the death of over a thousand children, and leaving over a million facing death with no basic survival essentials.