More than 10,000 people have been reported killed in Yemen over the last five months, bringing the war’s total death toll to over 70,000 since 2016 according to data collated by the Armed Conflict Location & Event Data Project (ACLED). While overall reported fatalities have trended downward this year amidst the UN-backed peace process, lethal fighting continues across the country and has even intensified in key governorates like Taiz and Hajjah.
Total conflict fatalities:
- ACLED records over 70,200 total reported fatalities1 from 1 January 2016 to 13 April 2019
- More than 7,600 have been reported so far in 2019:
- Approximately 2,350 in January; 1,930 in February; 2,330 in March; and 1,000 so far in April
- Fatality rates have shifted significantly across multiple governorates between the last quarter of 2018 and the first quarter of 2019:
- Reported fatalities increased most dramatically in Al Jawf and in Hajjah, though also in Taiz, Sadah, and Ad Dali
- They dropped most significantly in Hodeidah, though also in Marib, Sana’a, and Al Bayda
Civilian fatalities:
- ACLED records 3,155 direct attacks targeting civilians resulting in over 7,000 reported civilian fatalities2 since 2016
- The Saudi-led coalition and its allies are responsible for the highest number of reported civilian fatalities from direct targeting: over 4,800 since 2016
- The Houthis and their allies are responsible for over 1,300 reported civilian fatalities from direct targeting
- Notably, so far in quarter one of 2019, reported civilian fatalities are at their lowest point since the third quarter of 2017
- Still, nearly 380 civilian fatalities have been reported this year stemming from direct targeting
Flashpoints (spotlight on three governorates):
Hodeidah
- Reported fatalities continue to decline dramatically in Hodeidah:
- Reported combat fatalities dropped 89% from the last quarter of 2018 to the first quarter of 2019 thus far (from nearly 2,500 reported fatalities to fewer than 300)
- Reported civilian fatalities dropped from nearly 250 to approximately 100
Taiz
- Deadly fighting has spiked in Taiz:
- Reported combat fatalities have risen from approximately 850 in the last quarter of 2018 to over 1,000 in the first quarter of 2019, a more than 20% rise
- Reported fatalities from civilian targeting have risen from approximately 40 to over 60 in the same period
Hajjah
- In Hajjah, violence is reaching record highs:
- Over 1,100 combat fatalities have been reported in the first quarter of 2019 — the highest numbers ACLED has recorded in Hajjah since the start of 2016
- Over 80 fatalities from direct civilian targeting have been reported in the same quarter — the second-highest number of reported civilian fatalities recorded for the governorate
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Notes
1 Fatality numbers are often the most poorly reported component of conflict data. While ACLED codes the most conservative reports of fatality counts to minimize over-counting, this does not account for biases that exist around fatality counts at-large. As such, these figures should be considered estimates, rather than exact counts. Find more information about ACLED’s methodology for coding fatalities here.
2 This figure includes only civilians killed as a result of direct civilian targeting. It does not include collateral civilian fatalities. As such, the number is assumed to represent an underestimate of total conflict-related civilian fatalities in Yemen.
