Published on: 2026-11-05
Source: United Nations – United Nations –
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November 4, 2026 Humanitarian Aid
Safe is 14 years old. At the beginning of the year, her mother died, and she has no brothers or sisters. A few weeks ago, when the crisis in Yemen intensified, her father married her off to an elderly man. He feared that if he died in the fighting, there would be no one to protect his daughter.
Safa’s story shows how war deprives people of protection, noted Francesco Galtieri, the representative of the United Nations Population Fund (UNFPA) in Yemen. According to him, it is “a harsh reminder of the impossible choices some families face and their devastating consequences, especially for girls.”
Intense fighting is underway in several districts of Yemen. The number of displaced persons on the western coast and in Taiz has tripled: nearly 300 thousand people have been forced to leave their homes, more than half of them women and children. More than a third of the displaced families are headed by women – they have been left without a father or husband.
In places where forced migrants settle, women and girls may be subjected to sexual violence, harassment, and exploitation. Some of them are forced into marriage.
Malnutrition among pregnant women
In Taiz, midwives are among the first to see the consequences of the war. They report that pregnant women suffering from severe malnutrition eat only once, at most twice a day — “a cup of tea or a little bread and rice with nothing else.” The number of miscarriages is increasing, and more and more women are giving birth at home without medical assistance.
Out of more than 13,000 pregnant women in the Taiz district, about 6,400 were forced to leave their homes. According to UNFPA estimates, approximately 1,500 of them will require urgent obstetric care. The reason is the long journey in search of safety that women have to endure during pregnancy, carrying children and the belongings they managed to save.
“No woman should risk her life just because she is giving life to a new person in a conflict zone,” Galtieri emphasized.
Hospitals are closing their doors
At the main maternity hospital in Taiz, the situation is rapidly deteriorating. The number of births has halved — from ten to about five per day. Due to a shortage of fuel, only 10 incubators for premature babies are functioning instead of 40. At night, almost no patients arrive: because of shelling and security threats, women cannot reach the hospital, and medical workers find it difficult to get to work.
If access restrictions are not lifted in the coming days, “the hospital itself may close,” Galtieri warned. Out of 27 hospitals in Taiz intended to provide emergency care to mothers and newborns, only five are partially operational.
Even before the current escalation in Yemen, which has the highest maternal mortality rate in the Arab region, an estimated three women died daily during childbirth.
UNFPA and partners provide assistance where the situation allows. At the community level, 129 midwives offer help to pregnant women, and five mobile teams deliver reproductive health and protection services.
However, according to Galtieri, the needs of women and girls are often the first to be overlooked. Society admires the resilience of women but does not support them with real actions. “Their voices should not be lost behind the statistics of war,” he emphasized.
Please note; This information is raw content obtained directly from the information source. It is an accurate report of what the source claims and does not necessarily reflect the position of MIL-OSI or its clients.