CIMP Monthly Report - February 2024

February 2024 saw an increase in civilian casualties, following a dip in January
The start of the year saw a dip in monthly civilian casualty numbers, dropping to 67 in January from 102 in December 2023. However, civilian casualty numbers once again picked up to 99 in February 2024, a third of whom were fatalities. There was a 33% increase in the number of children reported among the casualties, up from 15 to 20, and the number of women casualties more than doubled, up from five in January to 11 in February. Ta’izz saw the highest civilian casualty numbers over the past month, at 17, followed by 13 civilian casualties reported in each of Ibb and Jawf. Small arms fire drove the highest civilian casualty count, at 31, on account of continued localised grievances. All but two of the 11 women casualties reported were on account of shootings, including four who were shot dead in one incident following a family dispute in Ibb. Ibb also saw a shooting take place inside a hospital in Al-Mashannah, following a dispute over the ownership of the hospital. Two civilians were shot dead in the crossfire, and such incidents can also threaten wider civilian access to healthcare services. The SAF casualty count in February was almost matched by the number of civilian casualties resulting from explosive remnants of warfare (ERW), at 30.

Ta’izz saw the highest civilian casualty count in the country, on account of an airstrikes, shootings and artillery fire
17 civilian casualties were reported in Ta’izz in February 2024, the highest monthly casualty count recorded in the governorate since October 2023. Seven of these casualties were the result of airstrikes, discussed below. Another four casualties, all children, were the result of shellfire in frontline areas. In Ta’izz city, a 14-year-old boy was killed and his brother was injured when shellfire hit a house in Al-Mudhaffar district on 6 February. Outside the city, a 9-year-old girl was injured by shrapnel from artillery fire in the Al-Barashah area of Maqbanah district, in western Ta’izz, and a 12-year-old boy was injured by shelling in Al-Aqrud in Al-Misrakh district. Of seven children to be killed and injured by artillery fire in Yemen so far this year, five have been reported in Ta’izz. Amid ongoing localised insecurity, small arms fire (SAF) shootings were responsible for another five civilian casualties in Ta’izz, and another child was killed by sniper fire in Ash Shaqab, an area in Sabir Al-Mawadim that saw a high frequency of sniper incidents in 2023.

Explosive remnants of warfare saw the highest casualty count in over six months
Explosive remnants of warfare (ERW), including landmines and UXO, were responsible for 30 civilian casualties over the past month, the highest monthly ERW casualty count seen since July 2023. For the first time since August 2021, the number of ERW casualties reported in Jawf surpassed those in Hudaydah, which typically sees the highest ERW casualty numbers in the country. Eight civilians were killed or injured by ERW in Jawf in February 2024, all in Khabb wa Ash Sha’af district. In the incident to see the highest casualty numbers, on 25 February, one civilian was killed and four others injured when their car went over a landmine in Al-Yatmah area. Another two civilians were also injured when they drove over a landmine in the same area at the start of the month. Hudaydah saw the second highest ERW casualty count in the country, with incidents reported in the eastern outskirts of Hudaydah city, as well as in At Tuhayat and Ad Durayhimi, resulting in six civilian casualties, although none were fatalities. followed by five in Lahij. All of the Lahij casualties were children. On 12 February, two children were killed and three were injured when a UXO exploded on a farm near Al-Mishqafah IDP camp in Tuban district. These were the first ERW casualties to have been reported in Lahij since February last year.

Resumption in civilian casualties as a result of airstrikes
For the first time in Yemen in almost two years, February 2024 saw reports of civilian casualties as a result of airstrikes, including a fatality. The last airstrike casualties were reported in March 2022, shortly before a UN-mediated countrywide truce brought a halt to a previous aerial campaign on the country. In the incident to see the highest civilian casualty count, on 24 February, one civilian was killed and six more were injured, including a 15-year-old child, when airstrikes hit a telecommunications network in the Shamir area in Maqbanah district, western Ta’izz.

A range of civilian property and infrastructure was also impacted by airstrikes in February. Another two civilians were injured when airstrikes hit a pesticide factory and nearby houses in An Nahdhah neighbourhood in Aththaorah district of Sana’a city, and one civilian was injured when airstrikes hit farmland in Al-Jarr area in Abs district, Hajjah. There were also three instances of airstrikes reportedly hitting telecommunications infrastructure, twice in Hayfan district in southern Ta’izz, and once in Maqbanah district, in western Ta’izz. Such instances threaten to restrict civilian access to telecommunications services, which can be particularly critical in rural areas such as Maqbanah and Hayfan.

IED threat persists in Abyan and Shabwah
Targeted IED incidents were responsible for seven civilian casualties over the past month, including five who were reported in one incident in Shabwah. On 21 February, one civilian was killed and four others were injured when an IED targeting a military vehicle exploded in Al-Musayniah area in As Said. Al-Musayniah is currently a flashpoint for hostilities involving a VEO, with several IED incidents reported to have targeted security forces in the district in recent months. The same area saw another IED attack in January which killed a civilian and injured two more in a blast that was targeting a military vehicle. A section of oil pipeline was also targeted in an IED blast in Shabwah, likely linked to local grievances relating to the hydrocarbon sector, a common driver of unrest in the south of the country. Another two civilians were injured in an IED attack in Abyan on 4 February, when an IED exploded in front of the gates of the Mudiyah Security Administration building. Mudiyah is another flashpoint for VEO-attributed IED activity, in eastern Abyan. However, IED attacks in recent months have typically been targeting security personnel and sites, and civilian casualties have been a rarity. Throughout 2023, only five civilian IED casualties were reported across Abyan and Shabwah, all in Mudiyah in eastern Abyan.

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