Fake gold, sometimes preferable to the real stuff
Food distribution project ends in Arhab
More than 1.600 families have benefited from the food distribution project.
The residents of Arhab, some 30 km north of the capital, were exposed to bloody battles between Republican Guard forces affiliated with former President Ali Abdullah Saleh and armed local tribesmen who sided with the opposition against Saleh’s rule.
The fierce war displaced thousands of people to the city of Sana’a, with others forced to live in caves after their homes were destroyed.
During the ceremony, the conditions in Arhab were highlighted, in addition to the plight of the victims and the displaced. The ceremony’s organizers stressed that there will be further relief projects for all the victims and displaced, many of whom are now living with relatives in the capital.
The project aimed to provide food support for people in Arhab who suffered from last year’s war with government forces. The distribution of support was based on field surveys and reports regarding living situations in Arhab that were conducted from March to the outset of May this year.
The food support was distributed to more than 1,600 families, composed of an average of 4 to 13 individuals per family. The food support included sugar, flour, rice and cooking oil. The distribution of support lasted five days and targeted the Shara, Al-Asmat, Bani Idash and Al-Jamah districts.
Ali Al-Maqaleh, project team head for the Life Makers Foundation, delivered a speech, saying, “Arhab has been suffering from many problems. Food shortages, drought, power outages and destroyed homes are among the major problems. Some people in Arhab have been living in caves.”
He said the current conditions in Arhab are extremely bad and the district is still in a state of conflict and shelling. He called for all civil society organizations to provide support immediately for the victims in Arhab, saying the situation is critical.
For her part, Amal Al-Riashi, the executive manager for the Life Makers Foundation, expressed her astonishment at the destruction Arhab district sustained last year and promised that the foundation will continue supporting all the victims in Arhab, calling for the government and the civil society organizations to join the relief effort.
These types of projects are not limited simply to Arhab. A similar project was implemented to alleviate the suffering of displaced persons in Aden.
Yaser Khairi, emergency coordinator for the Islamic Relief Organization, said that the humanitarian relief project in Arhab cost more than $115,000 dollars.
He said, “The Islamic Relief Organization has a plan to provide for the emerging needs of the district. The project will go on gradually to address water, health and education issues.”
Several families fled Arhab to the Sana’a. Some still live in Arhab’s mountainous caves instead of their homes, and to date, no compensation has been paid to them.
