Hollywood actress and United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees Angelina Jolie went on a special envoy to Yemen amid the country's ongoing civil war.
According to a report from PEOPLE, Jolie who is currently spending three days in Yemen, where she has met both internally displaced Yemenis as well as refugees in the north and south of the country, says the level of human suffering in Yemen is unimaginable.
The Oscar winner said: "For every day that Yemen's brutal conflict continues, more and more innocent lives are lost and more people will continue to suffer. We live in a world where suffering and horror dominates headlines, but where such headlines can result in overwhelming displays of compassion and international solidarity."
Jolie, who has for years worked closely with the United Nations Refugee Agency (UNHCR) since 2012, shared her travel to Yemen on Instagram. She called it "one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world."
"I've landed in Aden, to meet displaced families and refugees for UNHCR @refugees and show my support for the people of Yemen. I will do my best to communicate from the ground as the days unfold.
"As we continue to watch the horrors unfolding in Ukraine, and call for an immediate end to the conflict and humanitarian access, I'm here in Yemen to support people who also desperately need peace.
"The situation here is one of the worst humanitarian crises in the world, with one civilian killed or injured every hour in 2022. An economy devastated by war, and over 20 million Yeminis depending on humanitarian assistance to survive.
"Everyone deserves the same compassion. This week a million people were forced to flee the horrific war in Ukraine. If we learn anything from this shocking situation, it is that we cannot be selective about who deserves support and whose rights we defend. The lives of civilian victims of conflict everywhere are of equal value. After seven years of war, the people of Yemen also need protection, support, and above all, peace."
In 2020, Jolie donated an undisclosed sum of money to a pair of British youngsters who started a lemonade stand to raise money for those affected by the crisis in Yemen.
In another IG post, Jolie was in Sana'a meeting displaced Yemeni families who were forced from their homes. Half of them happens to be children. More than two million children are out of school in Yemen.
"I am in Sana'a today, meeting more Yemeni families who have been displaced and injured in the conflict. More than 4 million Yemenis have been forced from their homes by violence, and live internally displaced inside the country. Over half of them are children. And there are at least 50 active frontlines across the country, meaning that civilians are still being killed and injured every day.
"Some of these images are from a site for internally displaced people in northern Sana’a. The site currently hosts some 130 Yemeni families. Only 20 of these families receive food rations and even for these most vulnerable families, the rations are limited. All teachers work with no salary, walking 3 hours daily to get to school and back home again. The children often come to school having not eaten any food at all.
"While here in Yemen, I also visited Lahj governate in the South of the country, where 35 displaced families are based. The makeshift camp lacks all basic services, with the closest source of water being 15 km away. There are no toilets or shower facilities and most of the children living here don’t go to school.
"We live in a world where suffering and horror dominates headlines, but where such headlines can result in overwhelming displays of compassion and international solidarity. I hope this compassion and solidarity will be extended to the people of Yemen.
"As #UNHCR @refugees we are calling for:
– All parties to the conflict to respect and commit to international humanitarian law
– Safe passage for civilians trying to flee conflict areas
– Humanitarian access to all people in need, for humanitarian workers
– A peace agreement to end the conflict
– Urgent support for the @unitednations appeal for #Yemen, which is only 9% funded"
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