A girl, with her head and face covered in cloth in the colours of Yemen's national flag, attends a demonstration to demand the ouster of Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh in the southern city of Taiz July 4, 2011. [Photo/Agencies]

Humanitarian Crisis Deepens

Some 54,000 Yemenis have fled Abyan since militants took over its capital last month, a government official said Sunday.

A government official in charge of refugee affairs told a UN delegation visiting Yemen that tens of thousands had fled from Abyan to neighboring Aden, a port near a strategic sea lane through which ships carry some 3 million barrels of oil daily, Reuters reported.

Hundreds of families have also fled Arhab, where fierce battles took place.

The refugees, as well as severe food and water shortages, have worsened the country's humanitarian crisis.

Mohammed Arami, a 17-year-old who lost his leg during the recent clashes in Abyan, practices during treatment at the Artificial Limbs Centre in Sanaa July 4, 2011. [Photo/Agencies]