Three Years of Horror in Yemen
YemenExtra
Written By: Malak Ali Almakhadi
Ever imagined “the world’s worst humanitarian catastrophe” to exist in the 21st century, yet it is being confronted with an international neglect? This is happening at this very moment, millions are starving, thousands are ruthlessly slaughtered in such heinous war crimes, while others are left facing a fate of death due to preventable or able to be cured diseases.
A catastrophe like the Yemeni one is a symbol of shame to humanity, or at least whatever is left of it. This impoverished country is reluctantly going through such calamity as a result of the ongoing Saudi-led war, with American and British support, and the strangling air, sea and land blockade. If you would put yourself in the shoes of a Yemeni civilian amid such atrocious war, you would probably be wondering, “How can the world be so careless!”
Before I start breaking down what has been happening in Yemen regarding the humanitarian aspect, I must briefly explain what ignited this war against Yemen on March 26th of 2015. A day that changed the entire lives of the nearly 30 million people of Yemen.
The Saudi-led coalition has been waging this war ever since Ansarullah, the so-called Houthis, ousted a Saudi-friendly president, Hadi. They accused him of authorizing foreign influence over Yemen as well as corruption. As they say, if you want to know someone, you must hear what he/she says about herself/himself and compare it to reality. So what do Ansarullah consider themselves? What are their aims? Ansarullah say they are against foreign Saudi American interference and corruption, and that they are after a unified government, involving all Yemeni parties, which works for the people and not against them. They are also combating terrorist organizations like Daesh and Al-Qaeda with the latter (not known by many) fighting side by side with Saudi mercenaries. Local Yemenis living in areas controlled by Ansarullah, myself included, have proved this numerous times. Northern Yemen is nowadays much safer with suicide bombings nearly nonexistent compared to KSA/UAE-held southern Yemen.
Going back to the humanitarian situation in Yemen, here are the different types of struggle Yemenis have to endure; if they were lucky enough to not be included in the death list that has recorded 14,291 killed civilians. Among the 14,291 killed victims are 2,086 women and 9,148 men, according to statistics approved by the Legal Center for Rights and Development. On the other hand, you have the wounded victims, whether it was an airstrike, shell or an international banned cluster bomb dropped by the Saudi-led coalition warplanes on various governorates. The number of wounded has reached 22,537, of which are 2,284 women and 17,384 men, who have to accept their new reality of no longer being capable of living a normal life. To conclude, the Saudi-led war caused 36,828 killed and wounded civilians in three years.
Moving on to recheck on the damages inflicted by the Yemeni infrastructure, reports indicate that the Saudi regime targeted, with American intelligence support, 15 airports, 14 ports, 2,425 roads and bridges, 179 stations and power generators, 688 water tanks and networks, 410 stations & communication networks, 1,761 government institutions and 41, 3297 destroyed and damaged houses.
Before you go on, take a moment and take each number into consideration and their consequence on the everyday lives of Yemenis. For instance, thousands of Yemenis who require to be taken abroad for emergency treatment cannot make it due to destroyed airports and the closure of Sana’s International Airport. Imagine observing a loved one, slowly dying, in front of your own eyes and if it was not for this Saudi-led war, he/she would have had the chance to live longer. Unfortunately, this someone was my grandfather for me, and I could not help but become even more vengeful toward the Saudi regime and their allies.
Even poultry are not safe in Yemen. It sounds insane, but it is the reality. According to the latest statistics published by the Legal Center for Rights and Development, nearly 269 chicken and cattle farms have been bombed. In addition and amid an unprecedented famine witnessed in Yemen, the Saudi-led coalition struck 307 factories, 609 commercial markets, 6,912 business establishments, 722 food stores, 596 food tankers, 349 fuel stations, 262 fuel tankers and 3,757 transporters. Infographics grand chicken and cattle farms second place of being most targeted, after transporters maintaining first place.
Almost everything is a target in Yemen, including service facilities, whereas the most recent statistics report the bombing of 903 mosques, 309 hospitals and health centers, 869 institutions and schools, 141 university facilities, 264 tourism facilities, 112 sports facilities, 35 media establishments, 216 archeological sites and finally, while imposing a fatal siege on Yemen, 2,654 agricultural fields targeted.
Yemen is left abandoned by the rest of the world when it needs it the most. The voice of humanity must rise up and speak for the extremely oppressed Yemenis. For the killed, wounded, starving, ill with no medicine, students with no schools, orphaned children, widowed wives, and humans with no human rights, the world must awaken its conscience, and it needs to do it now.