There is a war raging in Yemen that is causing the wholesale starvation of a country. Unlike the standoff over Qatar, this war is being waged with airstrikes and explosives, rather than diplomatic jabs and press conferences. There are several threads in this story, so let’s unravel them one at a time.
Yemen has been at civil war since 2011. It began with the negotiated departure of President Ali Abdullah Saleh. President Saleh was an embattled leader since the country’s founding, periodically facing rebellions and conflicts from other groups that felt marginalized. He is accused of having committed many abuses of power in this time. Following the protests of the Arab Spring, President Saleh negotiated with other factions to leave the country, but only after receiving promises of asylum so he could lead the rest of his days in peace in Saudi Arabia.
His vice-president, Abed al-Hadi, was to assume power as interim president while international bodies helped mediate a proper transfer of power. In 2014, however, Houthi militants laid siege to Sana’a, the capital, and drove al-Hadi out. The Houthi are a Shia Muslim group in northern Yemen. The group’s militant wing had been one of President Saleh’s fiercest domestic opponents and immediately acted to take the country. International bodies concur that they were marginalized and abused by the Saleh regime and were subsequently ignored when the country’s future was being decided. Rather than being left out, they fought. The Houthi militia forced al-Hadi to flee to the coastal city of Aden, Yemen’s primary port and gateway to international trade. It did not take long, however, for the Houthis to reach Aden and oust al-Hadi.
Abed al-Hadi remains the internationally recognized president of Yemen. He went to exile in Saudi Arabia, at which point the Arabian monarchy got involved. Saudi Arabia intervened on behalf of al-Hadi, which is to say they intervened on behalf of the recognized Yemeni government. They began a severe air campaign, complete with airstrikes, blockades of foreign aid, and restrictions on international trade. Thus began one of the great humanitarian crises of our time.
Saudi Arabia has been at war in Yemen since 2015. Leading a coalition of 9 Arab countries, Saudi Arabia has sustained a ferocious air campaign against the Houthi rebels, in an attempt to restore al-Hadi to the capital Sana’a. The U.S. has provided logistical support, including information on Houthi movements, aircraft refueling stations, and military advice. And of course weapons- never forget American made weapons. Through its aerial bombing, Saudi Arabia and its coalition has decimated Yemen’s cities- some of the oldest inhabitations in the world. Saudi Arabia has since expanded its campaign to include a blockade. Originally meant to choke out the Houthi resistance, it is slowly choking out the life of the entire nation.
Yemen is starving. Some figures:
Yemen is facing the worst crisis since its founding. This crisis is man-made, and a hodgepodge of geopolitical and domestic interests have snowballed to create a veritable s**tstorm. Until Saudi Arabia and the wider coalition it leads decides on what exactly its end game looks like, and whether it includes the Houthis, this war will continue.
