Serbian citizen "trapped" in Yemen

Serbian citizen "trapped" in Yemen

BELGRADE -- Serbian citizen Muhedin Gegic and his Yemeni wife and four children are "trapped" in the Middle Eastern country, according to Serbia's state broadcaster RTS.

Gegic told RTS that he was in daily contact with the Serbian embassy in Dubai, that he "awaits evacuation, and thinks all that will soon be resolved."

The broadcaster said that Gegic has lived in Yemen since 2006 and is a resident of the town of Taiz, "where the situation is very dangerous due to numerous clashes that occurred in the past few days."

"Taiz is a purely Sunni place and they won't let the Houthis control the city. There's no fuel, the city is empty," Gegic explained.

He added that "both the Serbian embassy in Dubai and the one in Moscow" are attempting to evacuate him "in various ways."

Gegic said that "currently the problem are travel lists" - documents issued by Serbian embassies to citizens who lose passports - "and how to get them to Yemen."

He added that he "does not feel safe and well in Taiz because he has limited movement outside the house, and only sporadic electricity supply."

"Water supply is also critical," Gegic said, and revealed that thieves "recently stole almost EUR 15,000" of his money.

"My car was stolen, and the other one set on fire. Everything I was earning for nine years has gone downhill," said Gegic.

RTS reported that he told them he believed "the whole situation would be resolved in the coming days, as our embassy is making maximum efforts."

Saudi Arabia and its allies on March 26 launched air strikes against targets in Yemen in a bid to "defend the government of President Ali Abdullah Saleh" from the advancing Houthis.