SANAA (Sputnik) — O'Brien arrived to the Yemeni capital Sanaa, which is controlled by the Houthi rebels, and is also set to visit the Hudaydah province in the west of the country during his two-day visit.
1 October 2016, 22:28 GMT
Yemen has been engulfed in a military conflict between the government headed by Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi and Houthi rebels, the country’s main opposition force, since 2014.
Since March 2015, the Saudi-led coalition of mostly Persian Gulf countries has been carrying out airstrikes against the Houthis at Hadi's request. The coalition has been accused by the United Nations and humanitarian organizations of bombing hospitals and killing civilians.
According to the UN Human Rights Office, almost 4,000 civilians have been killed and some 7,000 injured in the war-torn country between March 2015 and September 2016. Around 14 million people in the country are in need of humanitarian aid, with over 3 million displaced, according to UN figures.
