On the 8th of March, the United Nations Special Envoy for Yemen warned that the nation was at a crossroads. Heavy fighting between the Houthi rebels and government troops has broken out once again, displacing tens of thousands of people over the course of February and early March. An already-dreadful humanitarian situation is at risk of further escalation due to a resurgence in violence in recent months. This most recent outbreak of conflict marks the end of a (relatively) peaceful period, which had raised hopes of resolution in the war-torn nation.

Martin Griffiths, the UN Special Envoy for Yemen, stated that, “Yemen is, in my view, at a critical juncture: we will either silence the guns and resume the political process, or we will slip back into large-scale conflict.” He went on to tell reporters, “Fighting needs to stop now. Military adventurism and the quest for territorial gains are futile… They will only drag Yemen to many more years of conflict.” Griffiths’ comments come as he visits Marib, an oil-rich city 120km east of Yemen’s capital Sana’a, and a potential target of future military action by the Houthi rebels. It is this specific province which has recently seen increased action by international aid agencies. The International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) have been doing their best to mitigate the ongoing crisis. In a statement on Saturday, the agency reported, “The ICRC and the Yemen Red Crescent Society have helped around 70,000 people, or 10,000 families, by providing food, tents, blankets, jerrycans, basins and hygiene kits.” If conflict in the region continues, further displacement is likely to send many more people to the Marib region. This could –most likely, will – lead to catastrophe as violence in the area continues.

The Yemeni Civil War has been in progress since 2014, when the Houthis captured Sana’a and made other major territorial gains throughout the country. The war has resulted in what the United Nations has termed, the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, as tens of thousands of people have been killed, and millions displaced since the war’s outbreak. While international intervention has been forthcoming in the form of a Saudi-led military coalition, as well as ongoing humanitarian efforts, there has been little progress towards peace in recent months. The current humanitarian crisis is only likely to escalate; as the war continues into its sixth year, the UN already estimates that 10 million Yemeni people are on the brink of famine, while a further 80 percent of the nation’s population is in need of humanitarian aid. If some form of peace cannot be reached soon, these numbers are only going to worsen.

Peace between the Saudi-led coalition and the Houthi rebels is unlikely to be imminent. Both groups have been criticised for their actions: the coalition for its apparent targeting of civilians in hospitals, schools, and markets, and the Houthi for their continued blockage of UN aid delivery programmes. While both of these tactics may be seen as attempts to force the war to a close, they continue to harm civilians in a very tangible way. It is the people of Yemen who suffer the most as a result of these policies. If peace is unachievable, at the very least the people should feel that they will not be targeted by military action, or find themselves cut-off from international humanitarian support. We have reached a critical juncture. If current political and military trajectories continue, the human suffering currently occurring, will only increase.