CIMP Monthly Report - March 2024

Civilian casualties increased for the second consecutive month
For the second consecutive month, the monthly civilian casualty count in Yemen saw an increase, up 7% from 99 civilian casualties in February 2024, to 106 in March. 40 fatalities were among the March casualties, up 21% from the 33 reported in February. Despite the increase in casualty numbers, the total remained below the 2023 average of 140 civilian casualties per month, There were, however, fewer children reported among the casualties, down to 13 from 20 last month. The number of women casualties also decreased, down from 11 to seven. For the fifth consecutive month, small arms fire (SAF) shootings were responsible for more civilian casualties than any other type of armed violence, at 34, followed by 16 civilian casualties from explosive remnants of warfare. As in February, Ta’izz saw more civilian casualties than any other governorate.

Drone activity and artillery fire in frontline areas drove increased civilian casualties in Ta’izz
33 civilian casualties were reported in Ta’izz in March 2024, more than in any other governorate, and marking an increase for the fifth month in a row. The majority of casualties were the result of armed violence in frontline areas, with 16 civilian casualties reported as a result of remote violence, including nine casualties from drone strikes in western Ta’izz, and seven from artillery fire in Ta’izz city. In the incident to see the highest civilian drone casualties, on 27 March, five civilians were injured when drone strikes hit the Akhdu Asfal area in Maqbanah district. These are the first civilian drone casualties to be reported in Yemen since January. On the frontlines in Ta’izz city, there were four reports of neighbourhoods coming under shellfire in Al-Qahirah district, including on 40 Street and in Usayfirah, Ar Rawdah and Az Zahra neighbourhoods, cumulatively injuring seven civilians, including three children.

All four civilian sniper fire casualties reported in March 2024 were in Ta’izz
There were also four civilian casualties reported in Ta’izz governorate as a result of sniper fire, including three fatalities. Three of the casualties were reported in Ta’izz city, including two in Az Zahra area in Al-Qahirah district and one in the east of the city in Salh district. The remaining casualty was reported on the governorate’s western frontlines, in Maqbanah district. All but one of nine civilian sniper casualties to have been reported in Yemen so far in 2024 have been in Ta’izz.

Escalated security campaign resulted in mass civilian casualties in Rada city, Bayda
With 26 civilian casualties reported, Bayda governorate saw the second highest civilian casualty count in Yemen in March 2024, after Ta’izz, due in large part to a series of incidents around a security campaign that escalated into violence in Rada city on 19 March. Two houses were blown up in Al-Hufrah city, which resulted in the collapse of another six surrounding homes, burying people under the rubble. Eight civilians were reportedly killed, and another eight were injured, including four children and two women. Another house in the neighbourhood was said to have been hit by a rocket-propelled grenade during the campaign, killing another five civilians. This is the second instance this year of houses being detonated during security campaigns; another house was destroyed with explosives in Ibb in February. Throughout 2023, 19 houses were destroyed in targeted IED demolitions, including 12 demolitions in Sirwah district, Ma’rib, where the tactic is often used for punitive or intimidatory purposes, linked to wider conflict dynamics.

Civilian casualties reported as a result of ERW decreased to lowest in five months
There was a decrease in the number of civilian casualties reported as a result of explosive remnants of warfare (ERW) in March 2024. ERW, including landmines and UXO, were responsible for 16 civilian casualties in March, including five fatalities, almost halving from the 30 civilian ERW casualties reported in February. This was the lowest monthly ERW casualty count to be reported in Yemen since October 2023. There was a particularly notable drop off in Hudaydah, where three civilian ERW casualties were reported in March, a decrease for the second month running, half the six reported in February, and the lowest monthly ERW casualty count the governorate has seen since August 2021. Countrywide, the incident to see the highest casualty count was in western Ta’izz, where on 29 March six civilians were injured when the bus they were travelling on went over a landmine in in Al-Mukha district.

Civilian casualty numbers pick up as a result of border violence in western Sa’dah border
15 civilian casualties were reported on the western Sa’dah border over the past month, threefold the five civilian casualties reported in the area in each of January and February, marking an uptick following the two-month lull at the start of the year. Monabbih district saw the highest civilian casualty numbers, at seven, all but one of whom were reported as a result of border shootings in Ar Raqw area, an area understood to be an informal border crossing area. Another five civilian casualties were reported in Shada’a district, all on account of shelling, which is more prominent a threat in Shada’a than in Monabbih, where light weapons fire from border patrols and outposts is the primary driver of civilian casualties. The remaining three border violence casualties were reported in Qatabir district, where Al Thabit area is another flashpoint along the border.

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