Over 500 families flee clashes in Yemen’s Hodeidah

A total of 540 families have fled residential areas in Yemen’s Hodeidah province to the cities of Hays and Al-Khawkhah, following intensified shelling by Houthi militias targeting civilian sites in recent days.

The Executive Unit for the Management of Internally Displaced Persons Camps in Hodeidah said on Sunday, citing Yemeni media, that displacement has surged significantly in the past 24 hours, with 394 families arriving in Hays and 146 in Al-Khawkhah.

Jamal Mushra’i, director of the executive unit in the province, explained that 294 families were displaced on Saturday alone, including 187 to Hays and 39 to Al-Khawkhah, while 246 families had left their homes in previous days and weeks.

Mushra’i stressed that these figures are preliminary and likely to rise as displacement continues amid ongoing Houthi shelling of villages and residential communities.

He noted that most displaced families are facing extremely difficult humanitarian and living conditions, urgently needing shelter, relief supplies, food, safe drinking water, as well as health services and protection.

Children, women, the elderly, people with disabilities, and those with chronic illnesses are among the groups most affected by this new wave of displacement, he added.

Mushra’i called on government agencies, humanitarian organizations, and donors to act swiftly and mobilize resources to assist the displaced, prioritizing families who have fled in the past week. He also urged immediate assessments of water, sanitation, and hygiene needs at the newly established displacement sites.