Civilian casualties see decrease from peak in July 2022
Following a peak in civilian casualty numbers in July 2022, when 230 civilian casualties were reported, numbers dropped once again in August 2022, down to 114, including 35 civilian fatalities. The number of child casualties more than halved, down to 25 from 60 in July. Conversely, however, the number of women casualties increased, up to 13 from eight in July. Hudaydah, Sa’dah and Ta’izz saw the highest civilian casualty numbers, at 23, 22 and 18 respectively. Explosive remnants of warfare, including landmines, UXO and an IED blast, were responsible for 44 civilian casualties, over a third of the monthly total.
Explosive remnants of warfare continue to result in highest civilian casualty numbers
ERW, including landmines, UXO and remnant IEDs, were cumulatively responsible for 44
civilian casualties over the past month, the majority of whom (32) were attributed to landmine explosions. Over a third (16) of the ERW casualties were children, who remain particularly vulnerable to remnant explosive ordnance, likely to in large part to limited threat awareness. Framed another way, of the 25 child casualties reported in Yemen in August 2022, 16 were on account of ERW. This is, however, a decrease from the 37 child ERW casualties reported in July. Hudaydah continues to see the highest ERW casualty rates in the country, accounting for half (21) of the August civilian ERW casualties. This number remains unchanged from July, when Hudaydah also saw 21 civilian ERW casualties. Governorates to have seen decreases in ERW casualties from July include Hajjah, Sa’dah and Sana’a, while Ma’rib and Jawf both saw increases in civilian ERW casualty from July to August, possibly as a result of the heavy rainfall exacerbating the threat. There was a
significant decrease in reports of civilian UXO casualties, but this is due in large part to a mass casualty UXO incident in Abyan in July driving a spike in casualties.
Women casualties increase by 63% from July to August 2022
13 women were among the civilian casualties reported in Yemen in August 2022 as a direct result of armed violence. Five of these were the result of isolated shooting incidents, including as a result of dispute-driven violence. Against a backdrop of insecurity and economic grievances, violence can be swift to escalate, including in residential areas, putting all civilians in the vicinity in harm’s way. Another five women were injured in a landmine blast in Jawf; on 24 August, seven civilians, including five women and a child, were injured when a landmine exploded while they were driving through the Libnat area in Khabb wa ash Sha’af district, in southern
Jawf. The casualties reportedly had a migration profile, and it is possible they were unfamiliar with the nature of the threat in the district, where the risk of exposure to ERW is heightened, and has been exacerbated by the recent rainfall, which is reported to have washed devices onto roads in the area.
Sniper casualties more than double from July to August 2022
Sniper fire was responsible for 15 civilian casualties in August 2022, more than double the six civilian sniper casualties reported in July 2022, and the highest monthly total in almost two years, since October 2020. Of the 15 casualties, 10 were reported in Ta’izz, which has seen 37 (64%) of the 58 civilian sniper casualties reported in Yemen this year. Moreover, among these 37, 28 have been reported in Ta’izz city, the largest city in the country through which the lines of control run, with active frontlines
overlapping with civilian residential neighbourhoods. The other five sniper casualties in August were in Shabwah, all reported on the same day in Ataq city, when hostilities between armed factions in the city picked up, resulting in clashes in the streets.
No airstrike casualties for fifth consecutive month, but drone incidents continue to impact homes
For the fifth consecutive month, there were no reports of airstrikes on Yemen during August 2022. Airstrikes ceased when the countrywide truce commenced at the start of April 2022, and have resultantly not been responsible for any civilian casualties since then. During the first three months of the year, airstrikes were responsible for 467 civilian casualties, driven in large part by a mass casualty incident in Sa’dah. Although airstrikes have ceased, remote violence persists in the form of shellfire and drones, the latter of which
have increased since the truce commenced. August saw the highest number of drone incidents reported to have impacted civilians in one month on CIMP records. Associated civilian casualties remain relatively low, at six, but the number of homes being impacted and facing likely displacement as a result is growing. 45 drone incidents were reported to have impacted civilians in August 2022, threatening to displace as many as 211 households, up from 138 in July 2022. Incidents have been largely concentrated in the frontline areas in Dali’, western Ta’izz, southern Hudaydah and to a lesser extent in Ma’rib.
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