CIMP Monthly Report

July sees joint highest monthly civilian fatality count of 2023 to date
Armed violence was directly responsible for 128 civilian casualties in Yemen during the month of July, marking a 44% increase from the 89 civilian casualties reported in June. 52 fatalities were among the casualties, the highest monthly civilian fatality count this year, joint with May. There was also an increase in the number of child casualties reported, up to 35, the highest monthly child casualty count seen this year. For the third consecutive month, small arms fire was responsible for more civilian casualties than any other type of armed violence, accounting for 46, or 36%, of the civilian casualties. The highest fatality numbers, however, were on account of explosive remnants of warfare (ERW), which were responsible for 20 civilian fatalities over the past month, half of whom were children. On a governorate-by-governorate basis, for the first time since October last year, Ta’izz saw the highest civilian casualty count.

Landmines and UXO continue to drive the majority of child casualties
12 children were killed and another 23 were injured as a result of armed violence in Yemen over the past month. Totalling 35, this is the highest monthly child casualty count to be seen in the country this year. ERW, including landmines, UXO and a remnant IED, were responsible for over two thirds (25) of the child casualties, ten of whom died. The high numbers were driven in particular by a mass casualty incident in Ma’rib where, on 25 July, a civilian found an unexploded missile in Wadi Abidah, in Ma'rib district, and brought it into his home. While attempting to defuse the device, it exploded, killing the civilian, his wife, his mother, and five children. Another two children were injured in the blast. Despite not being a frontline area, Wadi Abidah sees regular bouts of violence among local rival groups, including exchanges of fire and IED attacks. In another high casualty UXO incident, on 3 July, a 13-year-old boy was killed and five other children were injured when a UXO exploded in Mawiyah district in Ta’izz. The boy had been tending to livestock when he found the old device, but upon tampering with it, it exploded. A remnant IED also detonated in Salh district in eastern Ta’izz city this week; the device has been disguised as a packet of drinks, and upon detonation, killed one child and injured another. Children remain susceptible to ERW incidents across the country, particularly to UXO incidents, driven by heightened mobility and inquisitiveness, and exacerbated by limited threat awareness. Of 99 UXO casualties reported so far this year, 60 have been children.

20 civilians killed in ERW incidents over the past month
Explosive remnants of warfare, including landmines, UXOs and two remnant IEDs, were responsible for 39 civilian casualties over the past month, including 20 fatalities. This is the highest ERW casualty count to be recorded in one month since February this year, and the highest resulting fatality count to be seen since February 2022. Due largely to the mass casualty incident discussed above, Ma’rib saw the highest ERW casualty count, at 14, 10 of whom were children, followed by 11 in Ta’izz, all of whom were children. Despite not seeing the highest casualty counts, the highest number of ERW incidents was reported in Hudaydah, where six separate ERW explosions killed or injured civilians, including on the eastern and southern outskirts of Hudaydah city, and in the southern districts of At Tuhayat, Bayt Al-Faqih, Ad Durayhimi and Al-Garrahi. Another four incidents were reported in each of Jawf and Ma’rib governorates. Frontline areas across the country, particularly on the west coast, but also in other recently active frontline areas such as those in Ta’izz, Ma’rib and Jawf, are highly likely to continue seeing reports of civilian ERW casualties. Moreover, as armed violence such as IED attacks picks up in other parts of the country, against a backdrop of growing insecurity, the risk of civilians being exposed to remnant IEDs is also growing.

Shootings responsible for 46 civilian casualties, almost a third of whom were in Shabwah
Small arms fire (SAF) shooting incidents were responsible for 46 civilian casualties in Yemen over the past month, up from 39 last month and the second highest monthly civilian SAF casualty count this year. The highest number of SAF casualties over the past month was seen in Shabwah, where civilians were impacted by seven separate shooting incidents, resulting in 14 casualties, primarily on account of dispute-driven violence, including tribal disputes. Four of the shootings were reported in Bayhan district, including a checkpoint shooting, and another two in Ataq city, one of which occurred in a marketplace. Marketplace shootings were also reported in Sharab As Salam district in Ta’izz, in Sanhan district, Sana’a, and in Bajil district of Hudaydah. Marketplace shootings were responsible for seven civilian casualties in July. There was also a second checkpoint shooting reported in Sa’dah. In recent months, both markets and checkpoints have increasingly become flashpoints for armed violence, particularly shootings, often exacerbated by economic grievances and territorial rivalries.

Aid worker killed in shooting in southern Ta’izz
One of the shootings also impacted an aid worker, the head of an INGO’s office in Ta’izz. On 21 July, shortly after Friday prayers, two masked armed men on a motorcycle opened fire towards the humanitarian worker, who was eating lunch at a restaurant in At Turbah city. The individual died hours later in hospital. At least two more civilians were also injured in the shooting. This is the first shooting to have resulted in the fatality of an aid worker in Yemen since 2021, and prior to that, 2018. Despite authorities’ assurances that the area would be secured, later in the week, on 25 July, two IEDs detonated, targeting military personnel, but also injuring two nearby civilians. The situation in the area has since calmed, however.

Civilian casualties as a result of armed violence unchanged on the western Sa’dah border
Ongoing border violence in western Sa’dah continues to drive weekly civilian casualties, and throughout July 2023, 22 civilian casualties were reported in western Sa’dah, marking a slight increase from the 20 reported in June. Of the 22, all but two were on account of border outpost shootings and cross-border shellfire. Border violence remains concentrated in Monabbih, where ten civilians were killed and injured throughout July, and Shada’a, where eight civilian casualties were reported last month, in both cases on account of artillery fire and machine gun fire. Another two civilian fatalities were reported in Al-Thabit, an area on the border with Saudi Arabia in Qatabir district, one on account of cross-border artillery fire and the other on account of a border shooting. A checkpoint shooting was also reported in Majz district, where a 15-year-old boy was shot dead at a checkpoint in Al-Jamilah area. With 20 civilian casualties reported on account of border violence in each of June and July, numbers are at the lowest seen this year, but are not dissimilar to casualty counts seen in the area during the summer months in 2022, when June and July cumulatively saw 38 civilian casualties.

Remote violence including artillery fire and drone strikes drives increase in civilian casualties in frontline areas
Shelling was responsible for 20 civilian casualties over the past month, over half of whom were as a result of artillery fire in frontline areas. Typically, recent months have seen higher shelling casualty numbers along the Sa’dah border, rather than on domestic frontlines. However, July saw the highest monthly frontline shelling casualty count since November last year, save for a one-off spike in April on account of a mass casualty incident in Ta’izz. Drone activity in frontline areas also resulted in another five civilian casualties this month, the highest since January. Remote violence including shellfire and drone activity also continues to impact civilian homes, not only putting civilians at direct risk of harm, but also increasing the likelihood of displacement. As many as 112 civilian homes were estimated to have impacted by shellfire and drone activity over the past month, the same as was seen in June. The other type of armed violence that continues to result in several civilian casualties on a monthly basis in sniper fire, which was responsible for another three civilian casualties over the past month, including one in each of Dali’, Hudaydah and Ta’izz. One of the casualties was a child. Until some progress is seen on the seemingly stalled political negotiating tracks, frontline hostilities risk seeing a gradual increase, putting civilians at increasing risk of harm, and increasing the likelihood of displacement and restricted freedom of movement.

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