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Arab League Secretary-General Nabil Fahmy warned Thursday that restrictions on humanitarian supplies entering Yemen's southwestern Taiz province could trigger a humanitarian disaster, urging the Houthi group to immediately allow the delivery of essential aid as hospitals face critical shortages.
In a statement published on the Arab League's website, Fahmy expressed “deep concern over the deterioration of health conditions” in Taiz, saying hospitals were experiencing “acute shortages of fuel, oxygen, medicines and medical supplies.”
He warned that the shortages could force hospitals to suspend essential services, including incubators for premature and newborn babies.
Continued obstruction of supplies “directly endangers the lives of children and patients,” Fahmy said, holding the Houthis responsible for the humanitarian consequences of the restrictions.
“Saving lives cannot be delayed or subjected to any political or military calculations,” he said.
Fahmy called for the immediate removal of restrictions on humanitarian deliveries and safe passage for patients and medical personnel.
He also urged investigations into reported violations and accountability for “anyone found responsible for obstructing humanitarian aid or terrorizing civilians.”
The Arab League chief appealed to humanitarian organizations and relevant parties to take urgent measures to secure hospitals' supplies of fuel, oxygen, medicines and other essential materials.
He stressed the need to ensure that humanitarian assistance reaches affected communities safely, consistently and without obstruction.
The warning followed a statement Wednesday from the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA), which reported deteriorating conditions in Taiz as fighting disrupted supply routes and placed growing pressure on essential services.
According to OCHA, roads connecting the city to areas controlled by Yemen's internationally recognized government remained closed or inaccessible because of fighting, preventing deliveries of life-saving humanitarian assistance and commercial goods.
The U.N. agency said approximately 140,000 people had been displaced in Taiz province since the beginning of August, accounting for more than 40% of the roughly 330,000 people displaced across Yemen during the same period.
The humanitarian crisis has deepened amid a broader military escalation that began in July, described as the most extensive since the relative calm that followed a U.N.-brokered truce in April 2022.
Yemen has been engulfed in conflict since the Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa, and other provinces in September 2014.
A Saudi-led coalition intervened in March 2015 in support of Yemen's internationally recognized government.
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