Storyline:
The escalating military confrontation between the United States and Houthi militants in the Red Sea is threatening to deepen a humanitarian crisis in Yemen after nearly a decade of civil war in the country, UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg said on Sunday.

Yemen's Houthi fighters have used drones and missiles to attack Israel-linked commercial ships passing through the Red Sea and the Arab Sea to show its solidarity with the Palestinians since the current Hamas-Israel conflict broke out last October. Since January this year, the United States and Britain have launched multiple air strikes against Houthi targets, causing casualties and further exacerbating regional tensions.

In an interview with the China Central Television (CCTV) in the Jordanian capital of Amman, Grundberg expressed serious concern about the current tensions in the main trade route between Asia, the Middle East, and Europe.

Grundberg said the humanitarian crisis in Yemen remains one of the largest in the world, with more than two-thirds of the population being dependent on aid, warning an escalation will only worsen the situation for vulnerable civilians and hinder the ability of aid organizations to deliver critical services.

The United States in January re-designated the Houthis as specially designated global terrorists and imposed counter-terrorism sanctions on what it described as finance and trade facilitators for the Yemen-based militia in March. Grundberg believed the moves would further deteriorate the country's humanitarian crisis.

Yemen has been mired in a civil war since late 2014 when the Houthi group stormed several northern cities and forced the Yemeni government out of the capital Sanaa.

The war-torn country has maintained a fragile calm since Oct 2, 2022, when the United Nations announced the failure of the Yemeni government and the Houthi group to reach an agreement on extending and expanding the six-month truce that had been in place.

Shotlist:
FILE: Yemen - Date Unknown:
1. Aerial shots of national flag of Yemen, city view;
2. Debris, damaged buildings;
Amman, Jordan - April 7, 2024:
3. SOUNDBITE (English) Hans Grundberg, United Nations (UN) Special Envoy for Yemen (partially overlaid with shot 4):
"In the last couple of years we have seen a multiplication of conflicts worldwide and situations which require the support of humanitarian aid deliveries and the humanitarian donors. That means that the funds available for Yemen are not as available as they have been, and there is a need for additional financing and additional support for Yemen. All of that to say that this also underlines the necessity and the urgency that we reach a breakthrough on the political settlement of the conflict in Yemen.";
[SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE]
4. Cutaway of reporter;
[SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE]
FILE: Sanaa, Yemen - Jan 15, 2024:
5. Various of traffic;
Amman, Jordan - April 7, 2024:
6. SOUNDBITE (English) Hans Grundberg, United Nations (UN) Special Envoy for Yemen (ending with shot 7):
"Unfortunately and I really want to underline this 'unfortunately'. Unfortunately, the humanitarian needs in Yemen remain vast. And when I underline the word 'unfortunately', I do that because I would have wanted that to be different given the fact that we enter in the tenth year of the war.";
FILE: Aden City, Yemen - Aug 6, 2023 (CCTV - No access Chinese mainland)
7. Various of displaced persons living in tents;
Amman, Jordan - April 7, 2024:
8. SOUNDBITE (English) Hans Grundberg, United Nations (UN) Special Envoy for Yemen (partially overlaid with shots 9-10):
"I think that when we face the situation such as this one, where the United States has designated Ansar Allah (the Houthis), the major concern from the United Nations at this point is to ensure that humanitarian aid delivery can continue without hindrance. Obviously there is a broader concern as well, because when you see in situations such as these where you have a designation that can have a chilling effect on the broader economy in itself and can also affect the broader economic situation.";
[SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE]
FILE: Sanaa, Yemen - Dec 6, 2023:
9. Packs of World Food Programme (WFP)-aided grain in warehouse;
10. WFP-aided grain on conveyor belt;
[SHOT OVERLAYING SOUNDBITE]
FILE: Washington D.C., USA - May 12, 2020;
11. Various of White House;
FILE: Washington D.C., USA - March 14, 2020:
12. Various of Capitol building, U.S. national flag.

[RESTRICTIONS: No access Chinese mainland]