A new and bloody wave of fighting has engulfed Yemen, with over 300 people reportedly killed and hundreds of families forced to flee their homes to escape the fighting.
Clashes have intensified in the southwest of the country, where Houthi rebels have launched a new offensive, aiming to advance towards areas around the strategic Bab el-Mandab Strait, one of the most important maritime corridors in the world.
Fierce fighting has forced hundreds of families to flee over the weekend and seek shelter in camps for displaced people in the Taiz area.
AFP journalists saw residents arriving in trucks, taking with them everything they could salvage and setting up makeshift tents in open areas.
A resident from Makbana said his family fled in a hurry, while describing gunfire coming from several directions.
Another displaced person from Jabal Habashi said he had seen people killed and injured on the streets, while there were no opportunities to provide them with assistance.
"We are trapped here, hungry and with nothing to eat," he is reported to have declared.
According to the UN Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs, around 1,790 families have been forced to flee their homes since Friday due to heavy shelling and fighting.
The UN has warned of the possibility of "large-scale secondary displacement," as many of the families being displaced are people who have experienced displacement before.
From Saturday afternoon to Sunday morning alone, more than 140 people were reported killed. Two government officials said 84 members of their forces had lost their lives, while sources linked to the Houthi rebels reported 57 fighters killed.
