Minister for Foreign Affairs, Simon Coveney, T.D., today pledged a further €5 million in humanitarian assistance from Ireland for the crisis in Yemen. Minister Coveney made the pledge at the 2021 High‑Level Pledging Event for the Humanitarian Crisis in Yemen, convened by the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) and the Governments of Sweden and Switzerland.
Minister Coveney said:“The alarm bells have never been ringing as loudly in Yemen as they are today. The UN system has been warning clearly of the risk of famine – that the country is speeding toward it. The World Food Programme tells us there are 350,000 Yemenis on the verge of famine, and as many as five million people in places threatened by famine.
“It is essential that the world responds to provide humanitarian assistance to a people who are facing multiple threats to their wellbeing – from conflict, disease, flooding, a collapsed economy, and hunger.”
In announcing Ireland’s pledge of €5 million to the UN’s Yemen Humanitarian Fund, the Minister stated:“Yemen is home to the world’s largest humanitarian crisis. While the search for a political solution continues, we cannot lose time in addressing the devastating consequences of the conflict for the 24 million people in urgent need of assistance.”
Minister Coveney also paid tribute to humanitarian workers in Yemen, recalling the tragic deaths of four staff members of the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) at Aden airport in late December. He called for all parties to the conflict to respect international law.