Executive Director of the United Nations World Food Programme (WFP) Ertharin Cousin in a phone conversation with Iranian Deputy Foreign Minister Hossein Amir-Abdollahian announced the organization’s readiness to send the Islamic Republic’s humanitarian aids to the Yemeni people.
“The WFP staff despite all the current difficulties are continuing their humanitarian services in eight cities of Yemen including Saada, Amran and Aden; to this end, the WFP is ready to form a joint team with Iran to expand its humanitarian activities in the war-stricken country,” she said.
Amir-Abdollahain, for his part, extended his appreciation to the WFP for the measures they were taking to aid Yemen, saying the Islamic Republic would continue its efforts to send its humanitarian aid for the people of war-inflicted Yemen in several possible ways.
Noting that Iran was ready to dispatch three cargo planes carrying medical aid and food supplies to Yemen via the World Food Programme Organization within 24 hours, Amir-Abdollahian added “the most urgent issue at hand is to immediately stop the killings of the innocent and vulnerable people of Yemen, and Tehran will continue its consultations with the UN secretary General and other international figures.”
He once again stressed that the crisis in Yemen was solvable only through a political approach.
The Nejat (Rescue) cargo ship, containing 2,500 tons of much-needed aid, including food, medical supplies and tents, left the southern Iranian port city of Bandar Abbas for Yemen on Monday.
The aid consignment was donated by the IRCS and would reach Yemen’s port of al-Hudaydah in the Red Sea within the next 10 to 12 days.
The Al Saud regime has imposed a blockade on the delivery of relief supplies to the people of Yemen in defiance of calls by international aid groups. Last month, it prevented two Iranian civilian planes from delivering medical aid and food supplies to the impoverished Arab country.
Deputy Chief of Staff of the Iranian Armed Forces Brigadier General Masoud Jazayeri said on Tuesday that attacking the Iranian aid ship heading to Yemen will ‘ignite the flames of war’ in the region.
According to the latest UN figures, the Saudi military campaign has so far claimed the lives of over 1,400 people and injured close to 6,000 people, roughly half of whom have been civilians.