Yemen fighting displaces nearly 20,000, IOM says

Renewed fighting between Houthi rebels and pro-government forces in southwest Yemen has forced nearly 20,000 people to flee their homes, the International Organization for Migration said Tuesday.

Abdusattor Esoev, the IOM's chief of mission in Yemen, said the escalating violence on Yemen's west coast had displaced more than 18,500 people by Monday. The UN agency said the number of displaced people was rising by the hour as people continued to arrive at displacement sites.

Clashes have killed more than 300 people since Thursday, according to sources from both sides who spoke to AFP.

The Houthis launched a new offensive last week targeting areas bordering the Bab al-Mandab strait, a gateway to the Red Sea. The route has gained significance since Iran blocked the Strait of Hormuz in the months-long Middle East war.

The fighting pits the Iran-backed Houthi rebels against government forces after several years of relative calm. Earlier reporting cited experts who said the Houthis appeared to be seeking territory along Bab al-Mandab, a route that in peacetime links shipping to the Suez Canal and the Mediterranean.

The Houthis have been at war with the government since 2015 in a conflict that has killed hundreds of thousands of people. Millions have been displaced in what the United Nations calls the world's biggest humanitarian crisis.