UN: Houthi attack on Marib may displace hundreds of thousands
The potential for a Houthi offensive poses a major test for the Biden administration.
Hundreds of thousands of people could be forced to flee their homes if Yemen’s Houthi rebels advance on the city of Marib, the United Nations’ top humanitarian aid official warned Tuesday.
The oil-rich city remains a sanctuary for some 2 million people in the country’s six-year civil war, but the northern Yemeni rebels are now threatening to assault the enclave.
An attack on the city would have “unimaginable humanitarian consequences,” said Martin Lowcock, the United Nations' under-secretary-general for humanitarian affairs and emergency relief coordinator.
The Iran-linked Houthi rebels have pressed the attack, pushing the frontline to within 20 miles of the city, according to Reuters. The Houthis have also ramped up projectile attacks on neighboring Saudi Arabia as both the UN and the United States renew efforts to end the war.
