The U.N.'s World Food Programme said on Tuesday that it delivered food and food vouchers to more than 9.5 million hungry people in Yemen in December, just shy of its 10 million monthly target due to insecurity in the country threatened by famine.

"We were hoping to arrive at 10 million. We delivered a bit less because the actual situation slowed distribution in some areas, the security was not as good," WFP spokesman Herve Verhoosel told a Geneva news briefing.

In January, the WFP managed to deliver food to two hard-hit areas of Hodeidah - Tuhayta and Darahimi - for the first time since July, thanks to a de-escalation in fighting, he added.