Red Cross says situation 'catastrophic' in Yemen's Aden

AFP/Aden

The Red Cross warned on Tuesday of a "catastrophic" situation in Yemen's main southern city Aden, as loyalist forces battled rebels in the streets backed by shelling by Saudi-led warships.

The Iran-backed Houthi rebels and their allies made a new push on a port in the central Mualla district of the city but were forced back by militia loyal to fugitive President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi, witnesses said.

Naval forces of the Saudi-led coalition, which has carried out nearly two weeks of air strikes in support of Hadi, shelled rebel positions across the city, they added.

Spokeswoman for the International Committee of the Red Cross in Yemen, Marie Claire Feghali, said the humanitarian situation across the country was "very difficult... (with) naval, air and ground routes cut off."

She described the situation in Aden as "catastrophic to say the least".

"The war in Aden is on every street, in every corner... Many are unable to escape," she said.

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) said the situation was "worsening by the day".

MSF medics in Aden had "not received large numbers of casualties over the past few days... due to the difficulties faced in trying to reach a hospital," said Marie-Elisabeth Ingres, the organisation's Yemen representative.

MSF has a team of 140 local staff and eight expatriates at a hospital in Aden.

"Our priority is to find a way to send a supporting medical team," Ingres told AFP, adding a team was waiting in Djibouti "for a green light from the coalition".

The Red Cross hopes to deliver to Sanaa on Wednesday 16 tonnes of medical aid on a plane loaded in Jordan. Another plane carrying 32 tonnes of aid could follow on Thursday.

- Death toll mounts -

At least eight Huthis were killed Tuesday when coalition warplanes struck a position north of Aden, a military source said.

Other raids targeted air defence posts in the northeast of the central Taez province.

Overnight fighting in Aden left at least 10 people dead. That was on top of at least 53 people killed over the previous 24 hours.

Nationwide, more than 540 people have been killed and 1,700 wounded since March 19, the World Health Organization said Tuesday.

The UN's children agency said at least 74 children had been killed since the coalition strikes began on March 26, adding it believed the real figure to be much higher.

More than 100,000 people had been displaced.

Overnight, Saudi-led warplanes struck the rebel-held Al-Anad air base north of Aden, a pro-Hadi general said.

Further east, Al-Qaeda's Yemen franchise -- seen by the US as the jihadist network's most dangerous -- sought to tighten its grip on Hadramawt province.

Residents reported loud explosions as the jihadists attacked an army base in the provincial capital Mukalla, much of which they captured last week.

Observers have warned Al-Qaeda could exploit the fighting between Hadi's supporters and opponents to expand its control following the withdrawal of US troops overseeing a longstanding drone war against it.

- Pakistan in 'no hurry' -

The evacuation of foreigners continued with three Indian planes carrying 604 passengers, including some Yemenis, from Sanaa to Djibouti, an airport official said.

Pakistan's navy also said it evacuated about 100 nationals and around 30 foreigners.

Islamabad said it would take its time deciding whether to accept a Saudi request to join the coalition, which so far consists of nine Arab countries.

Pakistan's neighbour Iran has strongly criticised the intervention and rejected its accusations of arming the rebels.

Prime Minister Nawaz Sharif said Pakistan was "not in a hurry" to decide and that diplomatic efforts were under way involving Turkey and Iran that he expected to quickly bear fruit.

Turkish President Recep Tayyip Erdogan, who has expressed support for the coalition without providing military forces, held talks in Tehran on Tuesday.

Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif is expected in Islamabad on Wednesday.

Pakistan faces a tricky dilemma, as it has long enjoyed close ties with Riyadh and has benefited hugely from the oil-rich kingdom's largesse.

But it has called for a negotiated solution saying it does not want to take part in any conflict that would worsen sectarian divisions in the world.