Yemen -  Airstrikes and mortars damaged an IOM office in Haradh as well as the Migrant Response Point (MRP) in Basateen, both incidents occurring two days ago, on July 1, 2015.

A series of mortar and gun fire from the ground hit and seriously damaged IOM's Migrant Response Centre (MRC) in Basateen, in the Aden governorate. Later that day, IOM's office in Haradh was damaged during air strikes. Although neither incident injured migrants or staff, IOM condemns these attacks and urges all parties to respect the integrity of civilian and humanitarian facilities in accordance with International Humanitarian Law.

In Aden, the conflict continues, forcing IOM's MRP to keep its doors closed because of active fighting. There has been no electricity in the Basateen neighborhood for the last eight weeks, making it increasingly difficult for IOM's foster family house to accommodate vulnerable migrants. Additionally it also has not been safe enough for IOM to distribute food at the local Mosque in Basateen.

On 1 July, the Inter-Agency Standing Committee agreed to the activation of a system-wide Level 3 emergency considering the scale, complexity and urgency of the situation in Yemen, which continues to deteriorate at an alarming rate. IOM activated an internal L3 emergency in relation to its response to the Yemen crisis, in view of the regional dimension of the crisis and the complexity of carrying out evacuation operations from within a war zone on 8 May.

Over 21 million people or 80 per cent of the population require some form of humanitarian assistance, while humanitarian capacity and access to respond to those needs remains fairly limited due to active fighting, and persistent lack of fuel and unfulfilled funding pledges.

Between 25 June and 1 July, IOM reached a total of 130 internally displaced households (910 individuals) through shelter and non-food item (NFI) support in Al-Mansoora district. Additionally, during the reporting period, IOM supported Alwehda Hospital in Ash Shaikh Outhman with water trucking and provided a water pump in a school in the Al-Buraiqah district hosting IDPs, assisting a total of 25 households (175 individuals). Furthermore, IOM completed assessments of schools in Al-Mansoora, Ash Shaikh Outhman and Dar Saad that aimed to identify needs in these hosting facilities for internally displaced persons (IDPs).

IOM continues to provide water through water trucking services to 30 schools hosting nearly 1,000 IDPs in the three districts of Khanfir, Zingubar and Lawder, as well as daily water trucking to Lawder Hospital.

During June 2015, IOM continued providing health care to IDPs in both the southern governorates (Aden, Abyan, and Shabwah) and the northern governorates (Sana’a and Hajjah).  Additionally, IOM health staff continued working in the ‘22 May’ Hospital receiving causalities in Aden, and continued covering the mounting gap in reproductive health care in Al-Razie Hospital in Abyan by providing this service through its midwives. Medical screening of people evacuating from Yemen has also continued, as well as the treatment of medical cases among those being evacuated.

In Aden three mobile clinics continued working in the three highly concentrated IDPs areas: Al-Mansoora district, Ash Shaikh Outhman district and Inma City. The total number of medical cases treated in June was 4,922 including 1,745 women, 1,287 men, 1,044 girls, and 846 boys.

A total of 188 children younger than five years have been treated for malnutrition with 91 cases of patients suffering from Severe Acute Malnutrition (SAM); and 97 cases suffering from Moderate Acute Malnutrition (MAM). IOM staff continue to provide support at the ‘22 May’ Hospital to cover the gap in medical staffing in Aden health facilities. IOM health staffers also have been working in the emergency room, operations room and Intensive Care Unit (ICU).  A total of 701 medical cases, including 220 casualties and 481 other medical cases, were treated in June.

Despite three months of intense conflict, there are reports of new migrant and refugees arrivals in Yemen along Yemen's west coast. IOM's partners reported that in June more than 300 migrants and refugees crossed the Red Sea using smugglers' boats, while other partners in the south reported that 100 Somali refugees and Ethiopian migrants took a smugglers' boat on 27 June to Yemen's southern coast.

On 1 July, IOM was able to organize one flight to Khartoum, evacuating a total of 105 individuals. IOM has evacuated a total of 2,370 Third Country Nationals (TCN) and other migrants by air and sea. IOM has assisted 1,695 TCNs from 46 countries to leave Yemen through 13 flight rotations organized since 12 April.

In addition, IOM evacuated 675 Ethiopians migrants stranded in Al Hudaydah by boat to Obock, Djibouti. IOM continues to assist a residual caseload of stranded Ethiopian migrants in Al Hudaydah, whom it also plans to evacuate to Djibouti, where their documentation will be completed in time for their land transportation back to Ethiopia.

As of 1 July, 42,278 people have arrived in Djibouti and Somalia from Yemen. To date, 20,295 persons have arrived in Djibouti from Yemen: 1,777 are Djiboutians, 9,256 are Yemenis, and 9,262 TCNs.

There are currently 194 Ethiopian migrants accommodated at the MRC in Obock waiting to be documented by Ethiopian Consular Services on 4 July before being provided with Onward Transportation Assistance (OTA) to Ethiopia. Among them are 175 persons who were evacuated from Al Hudaydah to Obock and who arrived at the MRC on 21 June. Medical cases among the migrants are being assisted at the hospital of Obock. The remaining 19 individuals are transiting migrants who crossed Djibouti by foot in the hope of a better life in the Gulf countries.

The number of stranded migrants in Obock increases as well as the request of assistance from IOM for return to Ethiopia. Moreover, thousands of individuals have arrived in Somalia, of which over 90 per cent of are Somalis, 9 per cent are Yemenis, and 1 per cent are TCNs.

Yesterday (2 July) afternoon a cargo boat carrying 3,502 individuals arrived in Bosaso from Mukhalla, putting the total number of arrivals to date, to Somalia, at 21,983.

The registration is still ongoing for these arrivals in Bosaso.  Together with other partners, IOM continues to provide arrival assistance, including transport to the reception centre, medical checks, fitness to travel assessments and onward transportation to the vulnerable arrivals/those in need.  

For further information please contact IOM HQ: Joel Millman, Tel: + 41 79 103 87 20, Email: jmillman@iom.int   or in Yemen:  Bekim Ajdini, Tel: +962 79 826 4 906 Email: bajdini@iom.int