Yemeni women rally against conflict outside UN offices

Dozens of women staged a sit-in outside the United Nations’ Yemen offices yesterday, demanding an end to a war that has left millions displaced and at risk of famine.Protesters at the sit-in carried signs calling for the lifting of an air and naval blockade imposed by a coalition on areas controlled by  anti-government rebels in Yemen, an AFP journalist in the capital Sanaa said.Other signs demanded UN pressure to allow the delivery of food and medical aid into Yemen, which UN aid chief Stephen O’Brien has described as the “largest humanitarian crisis in the world”. The sit-in is expected to span three days, according to organisers. Protesters were seen erecting makeshift tents yesterday afternoon as they prepared to spend their first night outside the United Nations’ Sanaa offices.The conflict in Yemen has left more than 7,400 people dead and 40,000 wounded since the coalition intervened on the government’s side against Iran-backed rebels in March 2015, according to UN figures.In the past two months alone, more than 48,000 people have fled fighting in the country, O’Brien has said.Two thirds of Yemen’s population, or 18.8mn people, are currently in need of assistance and more than 7mn have no regular access to food.The UN has warned the country now faces a serious risk of famine.