After more than a decade of conflict, Yemen remains one of the world’s most complex and protracted humanitarian crises, according to the latest protection brief published by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR)
The brief added that “The country continues to face the compounded impacts of conflict, climate change, economic collapse, and the near-total breakdown of public services and institutions”.
According to the 2025 Humanitarian Needs Response Plan (HNRP), over half of the population, an estimated 19.5million people, require humanitarian assistance, including 4.8 million internally displaced people (IDPs) and over 61,000 refugees and asylum-seekers, mainly from Somalia and Ethiopia.
The brief noticed that the administration of the country remains divided between the Internationally Recognised Government (IRG) in the south, including Aden, and the Houthi rebels authorities in the north, including Sana’a.
In practice, this division requires humanitarian and protection activities to be coordinated separately with the respective authorities in each area, each of whom applies its own administrative procedures.
The prolonged conflict and breakdown of basic infrastructure and public services, combined with the limited reach of humanitarian assistance, have left many displaced individuals and households living in substandard conditions.
Yemen’s economy remains in severe crisis, with over 80 per cent of the population now living below the poverty line.
At the same time, the humanitarian response has been severely affected by funding constraints. Reduced and delayed funding in 2025 has forced humanitarian actors, including UNHCR, to scale back assistance and prioritize only the most critical life-saving activities. These funding gaps have further strained already vulnerable displaced households and limited the ability of humanitarian partners to respond adequately to growing needs.
The detention of UN and humanitarian workers along with unauthorized entries into UN Offices by authorities in Sana’a and other locations in northern Yemen remains a grave concern, making it increasingly difficult to provide lifesaving assistance to the displaced and Yemeni people.
With the majority detained in 2024-2025, to date, some 59 UN staff remain in detention with some since 2021.
The UN remains fully committed to securing the release of its staff, while also resolved to support the displaced and Yemeni people across the country with vital lifesaving humanitarian assistance based on the principles of impartiality, humanity, neutrality and independence.