TEHRAN - Hossein Amir Abdollahian, a senior foreign policy advisor to the Iranian parliament speaker, said on Saturday that the humanitarian situation in Yemen is catastrophic.

Amir Abdollahian made the remarks during a meeting with Fabrizio Carboni, a top official from the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC).

The advisor to the parliament speaker said “The Iranian Red Crescent Society is ready to help alleviate the sufferings of the oppressed people of Yemen.” 

Amir Abdollahian added, “Saudi Arabia’s military attack against Yemen, which have been continuing with the U.S. logistical support, should be stopped and there is no military solution to the Yemeni conflict.”

For his part, Carboni expressed concerns over the humanitarian situation in Yemen and said Iran can play a “fundamental role” in helping establish peace in the Middle East region. 

He also said that the crisis in Yemen should be settled politically.

Since the beginning of the Saudi-led aggression against Yemen in March 2015, the country has been grappling with a humanitarian disaster.

The Saudi-led coalition backed by the U.S. started the war on Yemen with the aim of reinstating ousted president Mansour Hadi. The war has led to famine and spread of cholera in the poor country. The UN is calling it “the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.”

Earlier this month the United Nations warned that Yemen could be facing the worst famine in 100 years if airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition are not halted.

If war continues, famine could engulf the country in the next three months, with 12 to 13 million civilians at risk of starvation, according to Lise Grande, the agency’s humanitarian coordinator for Yemen.

She told the BBC: “I think many of us felt as we went into the 21st century that it was unthinkable that we could see a famine like we saw in Ethiopia, that we saw in Bengal, that we saw in parts of the Soviet Union – that was just unacceptable.

“Many of us had the confidence that would never happen again and yet the reality is that in Yemen that is precisely what we are looking at.”

In April 2015, Iranian Foreign Minister Mohammad Javad Zarif submitted a letter to then UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon outlining a four-point peace plan for Yemen.

The plan called for an immediate ceasefire and end of all foreign military attacks, humanitarian assistance, a resumption of broad national dialogue and “establishment of an inclusive national unity government.”

“It is imperative for the international community to get more effectively involved in ending the senseless aerial attacks and establishing a ceasefire, ensuring delivery of humanitarian and medical assistance to the people of Yemen and restoring peace and stability to this country through dialogue and national reconciliation without pre-conditions,” said Zarif’s letter.

NA/PA