Almotamar.net - The Humanitarian Coordinator in Yemen has demanded access by all sides in the conflict in Amran governorate for delivering humanitarian aid.

"I urge parties to seek a peaceful resolution to the conflict and to fully observe their duty to protect civilians," Mr. Johannes Van Der Klaauw said in his press statement.

He called on parties to the conflict to ensure that aid organizations have full access to all civilians in need of assistance wherever they are in the governorate.

"I also urge parties to the conflict to ensure that aid can reach vulnerable people who are in desperate need of assistance."

He stressed that roads must be open to movement of humanitarian assistance and that civilians as well as civilian infrastructure must be protected from ongoing violence.

"I am concerned that continuing conflict in Amran has worsened the plight of thousands of civilians," said Mr. Klaauw.

Humanitarian organizations in Yemen have received reports of civilians abandoning their homes, others hiding in caves in nearby mountains, water pipelines destroyed and schools occupied by combatants, he said.

"At the moment, we are unable to verify these reports because we have very limited access to areas of conflict," the Humanitarian Coordinator added. "Our efforts to scale-up humanitarian operations in Amran have also been constrained by widespread insecurity."

The call by the Humanitarian Coordinator follows resumption of conflict following the collapse of a ceasefire on 14 June. The renewed fighting has triggered movement of people from affected villages to Amran City and towards the capital, Sana'a. Others are displaced within Amran, with reports of hundreds of families seeking refuge in caves.

More than 20,000 people have been displaced by conflict in Amran since October 2013 until May 2014, and renewed fighting has resulted in a possible doubling of this number during the last weeks, according to the press statement. "These come in addition to an old caseload of over 42,000 people, who were displaced in earlier conflicts.

The statement showed that insecurity along the roads and fuel shortages have pushed up the prices of key food commodities by 30 per cent in recent weeks, stressing if food prices continue to increase, a large number of people in the governorate will not have enough food to eat.