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(CNN) The Red Cross on Saturday called for an immediate 24-hour ceasefire in battle-torn Yemen, saying many more people recently wounded in airstrikes and ground fighting will die if not tended to soon.

The call came just before the U.N. Security Council met late Saturday morning to discuss the situation in the Arabian Peninsula nation, where Shiite rebels are pitted against external Arab air forces and fighters loyal to Yemen's displaced Sunni president.

A pause was needed especially in and near the southern Yemeni port city of Aden, where intense fighting has happened in the past two weeks, the International Committee of the Red Cross said. Food, water, medical items and personnel need to get into these areas, the group said.

"Otherwise, put starkly, many more people will die. For the wounded, their chances of survival depend on action within hours, not days," Robert Mardini, the ICRC's head of operations in the Near and Middle East, said.

Another Red Cross official said people are running out of food, water and fuel.

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