No end in sight as Yemen war enters fifth year

As the Saudi-led invasion in Yemen enters its fifth year, security officials say fighting has erupted in the key port city of Hudaida, killing at least eight people, including civilians.

Warring parties exchanged heavy weapons fire overnight Sunday into Monday as the United Nations scrambles to salvage a ceasefire deal in the Yemeni port city that is a lifeline for millions at risk of starvation.

The clashes were the heaviest since the ceasefire went into effect on December 18, residents said, and came as the UN announced a deal setting out details of a mutual military withdrawal envisaged by the Stockholm truce accord.

Iran-aligned Houthi forces traded artillery, mortar and rocket salvoes with troops of a Western-backed, Saudi-led coalition, with explosions heard across the Red Sea city, residents said.

March 26, 2015

On March 26, 2015, a few days after Yemen's civil war began, Saudi Arabia and a coalition of Middle East and some African countries launched a military invasion with US backing.

It came after pro-Saudi president Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi was ousted by the Iran-linked Houthi movement due to economic and political grievances.

During the past four years, fighter jets and ground forces from Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, Sudan, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain took part in operations, with support from private US military company, Academi.

Djibouti, Eritrea and Somalia made their airspace, waters and military bases available, while the US provided intelligence and logistical support.

The US hastened sales of weapons to coalition states.

Along with Britain, the US also deployed military personnel who were responsible for Saudi-led air strikes on Yemen.

Humanitarian disaster

Bombs from air raids have killed or injured an average of 37 children every month for the last 12 months, Save the Children said on Monday.

Air strikes have been the leading cause of war-related deaths and injuries among Yemeni children, according to the NGO.

The UN says the war has created the world's worst humanitarian crisis and killed tens of thousands of people:

Eight things to know about the war

1. More than one-third of Yemenis, or nearly 10 million people, cannot find enough to eat.
2. An estimated 85,000 children under 5 may have died from extreme hunger since 2015.
3. About 2 million Yemeni children are malnourished, with 360,000 of them suffering from severe acute malnutrition.
4. About 80 percent of the population, or 24 million people, need some form of humanitarian assistance
5. Nearly 18 million Yemenis lack access to clean water.
6. More than 190,0 00 people have fled to neighbouring countries.
7. About 2 million children in Yemen are out of school.
8. Some 1.2 million suspected cholera cases have been reported since 2017, with more than 2,500 confirmed deaths from the disease.