Taiz water output halves as fighting traps 3 million in Yemen
Why it matters: Fuel shortages have tripled water-truck costs and left rubbish uncollected, raising fears of disease outbreaks.
Renewed fighting around Yemen's Taiz has cut water production by about 50%, disrupted fuel supplies and left rubbish piling up across the besieged city, worsening conditions for roughly 3 million people who rely on the area’s water system. Aid groups and UN agencies said clashes since September have choked key routes including the Taiz-Aden corridor, restricting access to the Al-Dhubab aquifer and hampering water pumps, hospitals and sanitation services. UNICEF said families are rationing drinking water, while Save the Children said nearly half of the 250,000 people displaced by the latest escalation are in Taiz governorate. The price of a water truck has jumped to about 70,000 Yemeni rials from 23,000 before the latest fighting.