September 6, 2018 — For the first time in two years, UN-led peace negotiations between the government of Yemen and Houthi rebels are taking place in Geneva. These negotiations come at a critical time as the war in Yemen continues to take the lives of innocent Yemeni children, women, and men.
David Miliband, president and CEO of the International Rescue Committee, said: “While diplomacy has been at a standstill, humanitarians have been left to pick up the pieces - and Yemenis have borne the tragic cost of this war with their lives.
"Peace talks are not only essential, but a critical development in Yemen, where an inclusive political agreement is the only viable means of ending the war. These efforts must be accompanied by an urgent and indispensable effort to cease hostilities - relieving pressure on civilians who bear the brunt of the conflict and allowing the delivery of much-needed humanitarian aid.
"It is absolutely critical that global powers tied to the Saudi and Emirati-led coalition - namely the US, UK and France - as well as the UN Security Council use their influence to immediately and unconditionally end the violence. It is achieving no strategic purpose and only furthering misery.
"The international community has stood idle for too long as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis has wreaked havoc on Yemeni men, women and children, constantly suffering from famine and collapsed health systems. While these peace negotiations show that warring parties are willing to come to the table, the humanitarian crisis is so serious and the threats to civilians so grave, that Yemenis cannot, and should not, wait. Bold action, not words, are needed now more than ever.”
To download b-roll of IRC’s work in Sana’a, click here.
For more information, please visit IRC's Yemen country page.