As the crisis in Yemen continues to unfold, a major appeal was launched today by the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC).

Christian agencies including CAFOD, Tearfund, World Vision and Christian Aid are among the DEC members responding to the situation, which has been named the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.

The war in Yemen has now been ongoing for 20 months and more than 18 million people are suffering. Nearly three quarters of the population is in urgent need of humanitarian assistance, and more than seven million don't know where their next meal will come from.

According to the UN, 1.5 million children under the age of five are acutely malnourished, and children are already dying from lack of food. The chief executive of Oxfam UK last week warned that Yemen was "being slowly starved to death".

In total, more than 1,425 civilians have been killed since the conflict escalated last year, and the majority of these deaths were caused by Saudi-led coalition airstrikes, the UN says.

Since July, conditions in Yemen have significantly worsened as a result of flooding and landslides destroying civilian homes.

CAFOD's director, Chris Bain, said: "We see immense suffering in the faces of people in Yemen, of the children whose young lives have been stunted by malnutrition, and of those who find themselves homeless, because of the conflict, and in need of the basics of life – food, clean and safe water, and shelter."

DEC member charities are reaching millions of people across Yemen with lifesaving aid, but more help is desperately needed.

"CAFOD is supporting a partner in Yemen, and as a member of the Disasters Emergency Committee (DEC), we support our DEC colleagues who have a strong operational presence in Yemen and are well placed to reach vulnerable families most in need," Bain said.

"When a family receives a blanket, food parcel, hygiene kit, or medical attention, dignity and a sense of hope is restored. We hope and pray that the human suffering will end. Let us continue to keep the people of Yemen in our thoughts and prayers."

To make a donation to the DEC Yemen Crisis Appeal visit www.dec.org.uk