<p class="title">The United Nations said Monday it was seeking $5 billion to provide humanitarian aid to some 20 million Yemenis next year -- or about 70 percent of the war-stricken country's population.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Each year, the world body needs an additional billion dollars, UN Under Secretary-General and Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">A donors' conference backed by Sweden, Switzerland and the UN is set to take place on February 26 in Geneva.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"We didn't have a cessation of hostilities," although the violence appears to have decreased, added Lowcock, who recently traveled to the country, expressing hope for a positive outcome to peace negotiations taking place in Sweden between the parties under UN auspices.</p>.<p class="bodytext">He denounced obstacles to the delivery of humanitarian aid, noting that Yemen also needs help to bring its economy back from the brink.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"Hodeida port is crucial" for humanitarian aid, Lowcock said, referring to the flashpoint city at the heart of negotiations in Sweden.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The Yemeni government, which is backed by Saudi Arabia and its military allies, has been battling the Iran-backed Huthi rebels for control of Yemen for nearly four years, spawning what the United Nations calls the world's worst humanitarian crisis.</p>
<p class="title">The United Nations said Monday it was seeking $5 billion to provide humanitarian aid to some 20 million Yemenis next year -- or about 70 percent of the war-stricken country's population.</p>.<p class="bodytext">Each year, the world body needs an additional billion dollars, UN Under Secretary-General and Emergency Relief Coordinator Mark Lowcock said.</p>.<p class="bodytext">A donors' conference backed by Sweden, Switzerland and the UN is set to take place on February 26 in Geneva.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"We didn't have a cessation of hostilities," although the violence appears to have decreased, added Lowcock, who recently traveled to the country, expressing hope for a positive outcome to peace negotiations taking place in Sweden between the parties under UN auspices.</p>.<p class="bodytext">He denounced obstacles to the delivery of humanitarian aid, noting that Yemen also needs help to bring its economy back from the brink.</p>.<p class="bodytext">"Hodeida port is crucial" for humanitarian aid, Lowcock said, referring to the flashpoint city at the heart of negotiations in Sweden.</p>.<p class="bodytext">The Yemeni government, which is backed by Saudi Arabia and its military allies, has been battling the Iran-backed Huthi rebels for control of Yemen for nearly four years, spawning what the United Nations calls the world's worst humanitarian crisis.</p>