International Policy Digest: Only the United States can Save the Yemeni People Ryan McFerran, graduate student at George Washington University’s Elliott School of International Affairs “…The U.S. has demonstrated a strong capacity to address the emergency [in Yemen] through negotiations with Saudi Arabia … [and] should continue with its diplomatic initiative…

Reuters: Novo Nordisk, Red Cross team up to tackle chronic diseases in conflict zones “Danish drugmaker Novo Nordisk and aid agency Red Cross have teamed up to try to improve the treatment of chronic diseases among the millions affected by conflicts and humanitarian crises in countries such as Syria and…

Brookings Institution’s “TechTank”: How profitable are HIV drugs? Jake Schneider, research assistant, and Darrell West, vice president and director of governance studies and founding director of the Center for Technology Innovation, both at the Brookings Institution, discuss findings from their newly released report examining the estimated potential returns to private investors in…

NPR: Syria Systematically Harasses Medical Aid Convoys “Amid suspected chemical attacks and shelling, medics treating nearly any injury in a conflict zone in Syria need supplies like anesthetics, IV catheters, syringes, and sterile surgical gloves. These items are routinely included in humanitarian aid shipments. But in February, they were among…

New York Times: Will the Next Superbug Come From Yemen? Sam Loewenberg, public health reporter “…After years of bombardment that has crippled the food supply, destroyed basic infrastructure, and disrupted medical care, Yemen has become a breeding ground for antibiotic-resistant disease, with potentially catastrophic consequences — and not just for…

BBC News: Syria war: WHO demands access to ‘chemical attack site’ “The World Health Organization (WHO) has demanded ‘unhindered access’ to Douma in [Syria’s Eastern Ghouta] to check reports from its partners that 500 people were affected by a chemical attack there. The Syrian government denies being behind any use…

Reuters: U.N. Quietly Steps up Inspection of Aid Ships to Yemen “The United Nations is beefing up its inspections of ships bringing humanitarian aid to Yemen to ensure that no military items are being smuggled and to speed delivery of desperately needed relief supplies, U.N. and Saudi officials say…” (Nebehay,…

NPR: The Irony Of A $930 Million Donation To Help Yemen “The U.N. has received one of the biggest donations for relief in aid history: $930 million to its Yemen Humanitarian Fund, which provides food, health care, and other vital services for the conflict-ridden nation. But there’s an ethical concern.…

HuffPost: War In Syria And Yemen Prove We No Longer Care About Protecting Kids Geert Cappelaere, UNICEF regional director for the Middle East and North Africa “…The wars in Syria and Yemen are the acceleration of [a] loss of common consciousness. The lack of public outrage on a large scale…

Al Jazeera: International donors pledge $2bn for Yemen at U.N. event “International donors have pledged more than $2bn in humanitarian aid to provide life-saving assistance and protection to the people of Yemen bearing the brunt of a deadly conflict now its fourth year. Forty countries and organizations committed to donate…