Amnesty International: Millions of Yemenis at Risk After “Irresponsible” U.S. Aid Cuts
Yemen Monitor – Newsroom:
Amnesty International warned on Thursday that U.S. aid cuts, coupled with strikes on the Houthis, will have dire consequences for the Yemeni people, more than half of whom rely on aid to survive.
In January, U.S. President Donald Trump imposed a freeze on foreign aid pending review. Following this, Washington announced the cancellation of 83% of USAID programs.
The human rights organization pointed out that the US has been the largest humanitarian donor to Yemen for years, warning that these cuts threaten to deepen one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.
Amnesty quoted aid workers saying that the funding reductions “have led to the suspension of life-saving aid and protection services.”
This includes treatment for malnutrition in children, pregnant and lactating women, provision of safe shelters for survivors of gender-based violence, and child healthcare services.
The organization added that dozens of safe spaces for abused women and girls have been shut down and warned that many facilities offering reproductive health services or protection for women are also at risk.
Diala Haidar, Amnesty International’s Yemen researcher, said, “The sudden and irresponsible U.S. aid cuts will have catastrophic consequences for the most vulnerable and marginalized groups in Yemen, including women, girls, children, and internally displaced persons.”
She added, “Millions of people in Yemen will be left without the support they desperately need” if the aid reductions are not reversed.
Amnesty stated that the U.S. had provided half of Yemen’s coordinated humanitarian response plan, granting $768 million in support in 2024 alone.
An aid worker told Amnesty, “We’ve been forced to make life-and-death decisions based on little or no information. Often, there’s no one to talk to because USAID is practically no longer present.”
Haidar noted that “the Yemeni people, suffering from hunger, displacement, and exhaustion due to violence, are living through one of the world’s most dangerous humanitarian crises.”
She added that “the military escalation in Yemen, along with U.S. aid cuts, will worsen the humanitarian catastrophe faced by a population still reeling from a prolonged conflict.”
Amnesty stressed that U.S. measures targeting the de facto Houthi authorities must “clearly and effectively avoid disrupting humanitarian relief operations,” adding that “the majority of civilians in urgent need of aid” live in Houthi-controlled areas in northern Yemen.
(AFP)
