Every war-torn country has its own tragedy. That is why Ukraine is in the spotlight. However, the escalating and devastating war in Yemen has not received enough attention. The United Nations has long described it as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis. It continues to worsen. On February 24, President Vladimir Putin invaded his neighbor and former comrade-in-arms, Ukraine.
As we enter March, the Russia-Ukraine war remains a global hot topic. In Yemen, meanwhile, the UN says the country is facing a ‘death sentence’. Unless urgent funds are provided, up to 8 million Yemenis may lose all humanitarian aid in March. After the war started, the UN stopped supplying food to Yemen, so the plight of the Yemeni people has been forgotten.
WHY IS THIS HAPPENING?
Yemen has been devastated by the US-Iran proxy war. Over four million men, women, and children have been displaced in Yemen’s eight-year-long conflict. The violence is escalating. Yemen endured its highest civilian death toll in at least three years in January 2022 (more than 650 killed or wounded). More than 23,000 civilians have been displaced since the beginning of 2022.
In January 2022, the UN also cut or closed nearly two-thirds of major aid programs, including life-saving ones. In Yemen, approximately 80 per cent or around 30 million people need humanitarian assistance, and over 13 million people are in danger of starvation, according to UN estimates.
UN World Food Programme (WFP) warns that the Russian invasion of Ukraine will likely increase fuel and food prices (already doubled in the past year) in Yemen, causing a ‘catastrophe’. Yemen is on the verge of famine, and more than 5 million people live in conditions similar to famine, according to the World Food Program.
THE ORIGIN STORY
Yemen is a relatively new country in its current form. Former North Yemen and former South Yemen joined together in 1990 to form Yemen, hoping to bring peace to the Arabian Peninsula country. The country didn’t find peace, however. The civil war continues. The United Nations and the international community recognize its government in exile. Actually, Yemen’s unification did not pacify all the forces operating in its north and south. The Houthi rebels and other anti-government forces continued to challenge the government.
President Ali Abdallah Saleh was forced to resign in 2011 when it reached a breaking point. Corrupt practices, unemployment, and food insecurity had made Saleh unpopular. Arab Spring uprisings in 2011 made his stay in power impossible. Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi took over, but the situation did not improve. Yemen’s political system was divided.
A WAR EMERGES IN 2014
The Houthis opened fire on Sanaa when Hadi appeared vulnerable. In 2014, an armed conflict erupted. Saudi Arabia, which backs the official government, and Iran, which supports the rebel Houthis, have turned Yemen into a shadow boxing ring. Sunni Muslims disillusioned by the transition of power in Yemen backed the Houthis as well. Houthi forces seized much of the country’s north and Sanaa. Hadi fled to Saudi Arabia from the south.
US-BACKED COALITION ENTERS YEMEN
In March 2015, a Saudi-led coalition of nine nations, including the UAE, was backed logistically by the US. Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s pro-Gulf government was to be restored by pushing back the Houthis. According to the coalition, the war would be over within weeks. Yet it continues to worsen.
WHO IS ATTACKING WHOM?
Yemen’s war web is complicated and layered, making this question difficult to answer. For simplicity’s sake, let’s say Houthi rebels [from several factions] are on one side. They support Yemen’s minority Zaidi Shia Muslim group, Ansar Allah. The Saudi-led military coalition backs the Yemeni government. The coalition claims the rebels are Iranian proxies and wants to reverse growing Iranian influence in the region. The Houthis and Tehran deny this.
OTHER PLAYERS
The chaos in Yemen has also attracted terrorist outfits such as al-Qaeda and the Islamic State. Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and an IS affiliate(Aden) in the region seized territory as a result. It occupies territory in the area. This strait, through which a large number of oil shipments pass, has geostrategic significance.
WHO CONTROLS WHAT?
As of now, the Houthis control more than 80 percent of Yemen’s territory and have carried out dozens of missile and drone attacks on Saudi Arabia. Saudi Arabia has, however, kept the airport in Sanaa closed for the Houthis through its blockade program.
BIDEN BECOMES PRESIDENT, SITUATION WORSENS
Following Joe Biden’s election as US President in January 2021, there were hopes for a de-escalation of the Yemeni crisis and for changes in American foreign policy. In March 2021, the Houthis rejected a Saudi-backed ceasefire proposal.
Coalition members insisted that Yemen’s blockade be lifted first and Sanaa airport be reopened. The Houthi attacks (using drones and missiles) on Abu Dhabi on January 17 represented the first attacks since 2018 by the rebels following territory losses.
Since then, the Saudi-led military coalition has targeted civilians and civilian infrastructure more frequently in Yemen. The death toll in Yemen is rising, with bombs falling on airports, hospitals, and schools. During a coalition air raid on a prison in northern Yemen on January 21, 2022, 80 people were killed. The Saudi-led alliance denied responsibility for the attack.
A year ago, President Biden reversed the Trump administration’s designation of the Houthis as a Foreign Terrorist Organization (FTO). Having the Houthis designated as an FTO again following the attack on the UAE would only intensify warfare and further deepen the crisis.
NEW SANCTIONS
On February 23, 2022, the US announced fresh sanctions against a network allegedly financed by Iran’s Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Washington accused the Houthis of prolonging the conflict and urged them to ‘negotiate in good faith without preconditions to end the conflict.
The United States remains fully committed to assisting Saudi Arabia and the UAE in defending themselves and the tens of thousands of US citizens living in the Gulf against these Houthi attacks. The Houthis have ramped up missile and drone attacks against the US’s ally Saudi Arabia, even targeting the UAE. As Russia’s invasion of Ukraine causes petroleum prices to rise, the US is talking to Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
UNSC RESOLUTION
On February 28, 2022, the United Nations Security Council (UNSC) adopted a resolution to extend an arms embargo in place since 2015 to cover the entire rebel group.
WHAT IS NEXT?
Conflict in Yemen has come to a stalemate due to the incapacity of either side to win militarily, and violence is on the rise. In order to reach a negotiated settlement, the United Nations has been bringing the parties to a ceasefire. But the fighting continues. To reach a solution, the Saudis, the Emirates, and the Houthis would have to work together. As the war in Ukraine catches international attention, the war devastation in Yemen should awaken the world, so that what is left of Yemen will not fall victim to bombings, hunger and disease.
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