France, Saudi to hold Yemen humanitarian conference

France and Saudi Arabia will co-host an international conference on Yemen in Paris in June to assess humanitarian needs for the country and possibly contribute to reviving U.N.-backed peace talks. A Saudi-led coalition backed by the West has carried out air strikes against the armed Houthi movement in a war since 2015 to restore the […]

France and Saudi Arabia will co-host an international conference on Yemen in Paris in June to assess humanitarian needs for the country and possibly contribute to reviving U.N.-backed peace talks.

A Saudi-led coalition backed by the West has carried out air strikes against the armed Houthi movement in a war since 2015 to restore the internationally recognized government. 

More than 10,000 people have been killed in a war that has displaced 3 million internally and unleashed the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, the U.N. says. 

“We are currently working on how to organize this conference with our various partners, Yemen and the United Nations,” France’s foreign ministry spokeswoman Agnes von der Muhll told reporters in a daily briefing on Wednesday. 

“This conference should take stock of humanitarian needs, evaluate the assistance provided and the response mechanisms which need to be improved and define humanitarian actions to improve the situation of civilian populations.”