First UN aid convoy crosses Saudi border to Yemen (Roundup)

Oct 11, 2009, 14:50 GMT

Sana'a, Yemen - A convoy carrying relief items to civilians displaced by the ongoing hostilities between the Yemeni army and a local rebel group crossed the border from Saudi Arabia to Yemen on Sunday after weeks of delay, a senior UN humanitarian official said.

'I am glad to say that, actually, the first convoy did cross the Saudi border today,' John Holmes, UN Undersecretary General for Humanitarian Affairs and Emergency Relief Coordinator, told a press conference.

He said the convoy of three trucks from the UN refugee agency UNHCR crossed with aid to people around the Saudi Alb area.

Holmes said the delay was caused by 'administrative' arrangements related to visas and how exactly the trucks cross.

Thousands of civilians are stuck on the borders after fleeing the battles in the north-western provinces of Saada and Amran, the latest round of fighting in a five-year conflict between the Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, and the government forces.

The UN official said the response from the international community to the flash appeal for 24 million dollars his organisation launched last month was 'disappointedly slow' and appealed for 'generous respond.'

He said that around 10 million dollars are secured in commitments and pledges towards the appeal.

Germany has donated 1.5 million euros (2.2 million dollars) to aid agencies running relief operations in conflict-hit north-western Yemen, the German embassy in Sana'a said Sunday.

The funding went to the International of the Red Cross, the UN refugee agency UNHCR and the World Food Programme, each received 500,000 euros, the embassy said in a press release, the embassy said in a press release.

Holmes further warned of a 'serious humanitarian situation' in Saada that could further destabilize the impoverished country, which is already facing a separatist revolt in the south.

'Yemen faces many political and developmental problems. It is important that this humanitarian situation is not allowed to deteriorate further because that would also threaten stability in Yemen and in the region,' Holmes said.

An estimated 150,000 people have been forced to leave their villages in Saada and neighbouring Amran province by the fighting.

Thousands of displaced people are still unreachable by aid agencies due to the lack of humanitarian corridors.