The top UN humanitarian official in Yemen on Saturday called for justice in the wake of the recent attack against World Food Programme (WFP) staff that left one person dead and another injured. 

In a statement, UN Resident and Humanitarian Coordinator David Gressly said he was “shocked and deeply saddened by the appalling attack”, which occurred on Friday when unknown gunmen fired on the aid workers in the town of Turbah, located in Taiz governorate in southwestern Yemen.

Never a target

Mr. Gressley said the entire UN family and humanitarian partners in the country are grieving the loss of Moayad Hameidi, a Jordanian national and dedicated humanitarian, who died in hospital shortly after the attack.

“Mr. Hameidi’s death is indeed an unacceptable tragedy. I call on the authorities to bring the perpetrators to justice. Humanitarian workers should never be a target,” he said.

Mr. Hameidi was a veteran WFP staff member, having worked for the UN agency for 18 years, including on a previous posting in Yemen.

He had only recently returned to the country to assume a new job as the head of WFP’s office in Taiz.

The Resident Coordinator conveyed his heartfelt sympathies to Mr. Hameidi’s family and friends, and wished a speedy recovery to the injured staff member.