CIMP Monthly Report - October 2023

Civilian casualties increased in October after the September lull
The number of civilian casualties reported as a result of armed violence in Yemen increased in October, up to 124, marking an increase of 36% from the 91 civilian casualties reported in September. The number of fatalities among the casualties also increased, up to 37, marking a 32% increase from September. The number of children among the casualties, however, decreased, down to 14, the second lowest monthly child casualty count in the country this year. There were also 14 women among the casualties, conversely marking the second highest monthly woman casualty count this year. The October 2023 casualty numbers were not dissimilar to those reported in October 2022, when 130 civilian casualties were reported, including 36 fatalities.

Sa’dah saw more civilian casualties than any other governorate
For the third consecutive month, Sa’dah saw more civilian casualties than any other governorate, at 46, accounting for over a third (36%) of the countrywide casualties. All but three of the casualties were a result of border violence in the western Sa’dah districts, including 24 civilian casualties in Shada’a, 16 in Monabbih, and three in Al-Thabit area of Qatabir district. Of the casualties in Monabbih, 10 were reported as a result of shellfire on Al Umm Shaykh, a recent flashpoint. At least six migrants were reportedly among the casualties in Al Umm Shaykh. Border violence remains primarily characterised by cross border shelling, which was responsible for 56% of the border casualties in October, and light weapons fire, typically machine gun fire from border outposts and patrols, which was responsible for 42% of the past month’s border casualties. There was also one casualty reported as a result of a drone strike on Al-Mashnaq area in Shada’a district; the third civilian drone casualty to be reported on the border this year.

Weapons cache explosion in Amran resulted in 30 civilian casualties
30 of the past month’s casualties were reported as a result of a weapons cache explosion in Amran. On 17 October, three civilians were killed, and another 27 civilians were injured in a blast, when a munitions store at an arms dealer's house in Al-Mamar in Jabal Iyal Yazid district exploded. Initial reports put casualty figures higher, claiming that at least 14 civilians had been killed and another 60 injured, but there have been no further reports with which to corroborate these numbers. The explosion was also reported to have damaged a number of houses in the area, with some reports suggesting that five houses were completely destroyed, and others damaged. Weapons cache explosions are relatively infrequent in Yemen, but of the two weapons cache explosions reported in 2022, the average civilian casualty count per incident was 35. The October incident in Amran was the first weapons storage explosion to be reported in 2023.

Civilian casualties almost doubled in Ta’izz compared to September numbers
Across Ta’izz governorate, 22 civilian casualties were reported as a result of armed violence in October 2023, almost double the 12 casualties reported in the governorate in September. Small arms fire (SAF) was responsible for the highest casualty numbers, at nine, the highest seen in one month in the governorate since July, all on account of isolated incidents, including dispute-driven violence. There were also five shelling casualties, all reported in Salh district, where on 8 October, a girl was killed, and her mother, father and sister were injured, all IDPs, when artillery shells hit a house in Shib Ad Dubbah neighbourhood. Another civilian was killed by shrapnel from artillery fire on Ash Shab neighbourhood in the same district on 23 October. There were also eight instances of shellfire hitting civilian houses in Al-Qahirah and Al-Mudaffar, also in Ta’izz city, and in Maqbanah district in the west of the governorate, and farmland in several villages in Maqbanah was also hit by shellfire at the start of the month, and threatening further displacement and loss of livelihood, although no further casualties were reported. Five of the casualties were the result of sniper fire, including two women and two children. Of 44 civilian sniper casualties reported across Yemen so far this year, 82% (36) have been reported in Ta’izz. Moreover, among those 36, 15 have been children, and eight have been women.

Hudaydah saw the lowest monthly casualty count since CIMP commenced
Nine civilian casualties were reported in Hudaydah over the past month, half the 17 civilian casualties reported in September, and the lowest monthly civilian casualty count to have been reported in the governorate since CIMP commenced reporting at the start of 2018. All nine casualties were the result of landmine explosions, seven of whom were reported in At Tuhayat, a frontline district in the south of the governorate, one in Ad Durayhimi, just south of Hudaydah city, and one in Al-Hali, on the eastern outskirts of Hudaydah city. Of the 136 ERW casualties to have been reported in Hudaydah so far this year, 40 have been reported in At Tuhayat, followed by 38 on the outskirts of Hudaydah city and 28 in Ad Durayhimi.

October saw the lowest monthly ERW casualty count in almost two years
Explosive remnants of warfare (ERW) were responsible for 14 civilian casualties across Yemen in October 2023, down 39% from September, and marking the lowest monthly ERW casualty count seen in Yemen not only in 2023, but since November 2021, before the frontlines in Hudaydah shifted south, giving way to a surge in ERW casualties. While overall ERW casualty numbers decreased, the number of ERW fatalities increased from seven in September to 10 in October; of the 14 ERW casualties reported in October, 71% were fatalities. Five of the ERW casualties were children, including a boy who was killed in a landmine explosion while tending to livestock in Ad Durayhimi in southern Hudaydah, another child who was killed along with both parents in a landmine blast in At Tuhayat district, also in south Hudaydah, and two boys who were killed and a girl who was injured when a UXO, allegedly a remnant cluster munition, exploded in An Naashuh in Haydan district. Children remain particularly vulnerable to UXO incidents, accounting for 60% of the 124 UXO casualties in Yemen this year, and for 35% of the 161 landmine casualties.

.

For more detailed or area-specific assessments, please reach out to the CIMP team directly via the address below.