Yemen: The stifled humanitarian crisis
The conflict in Yemen is the “world’s largest humanitarian catastrophe”, in which the proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran has contributed to the famine and furthered the propagation of weapons in the country. Despite this, its belligerents neglect to take actions.
The Yemen conflict originated from a failed political transition during the Arab Spring in 2011, which triggered a bloody war between supporters of Yemen’s new government and the Houthi rebels, a Zaidi-Shia Muslim armed movement with a political agenda, originally allied with the old regime of President Saleh. In September 2014, the Yemen Houthi forces took control of the capital Sanaa and other areas of the country, leading to the formation of a coalition in March 2015, spearheaded by Saudi Arabia (KSA), which has since launched airstrikes against the Houthis.
The Saudi Arabian involvement originates from its perpetual geopolitical conflict with Iran, which has seen both competing for regional influence. For decades, the KSA has acted with the aim of maintaining Yemen’s position of power as weak enough as to not pose a threat to the kingdom, and strong enough to not fall in the hands of Shia influence, as it would with Iran. As Yemen shares Saudi Arabia’s southern border, the former country has taken an aggressive stance in the conflict, and this proxy war has directly contributed to the disastrous humanitarian situation.
Recently, the Saudi-Iran relations took a turn for the worse in November 2017 when a ballistic missile was fired by the Houthi rebels at Riyadh (KSA’s capital). The Saudi regime stated it was supplied by Iran, therefore emitting a declaration of war.
Today, Yemen is considered the world’s largest humanitarian crisis due to appalling human rights abuses amounting to potential war crimes coming from both parties. Over 8 million people face famine due to the coalition’s import restrictions and blockade of Houthi-controlled ports. Additionally, the coalition obstructed entry points in Yemen in November 2017 after the ballistic missile was fired at Riyadh, further aggravating the crisis.
According to a UNHRC report released in August 2018, “6,475 civilians have been killed since the Saudi intervention began in March 2015, but the real figure is likely to be significantly higher”, while 85 ‘unlawful coalition airstrikes’ have been recorded by the Human Rights Watch, being potential war crimes. The Houthis are also at fault, blocking medical supplies and food, as well as preventing aid workers and organisations from accessing numerous areas in the country.
The UK Secretary of State for International Development warned that “using starvation as a weapon was a breach of humanitarian law”. The former UN secretary-general Ban Ki-moon added the Houthi rebels, Yemen government forces, and the Saudi-led coalition to his “list of shame” for human rights violations. However, the coalition was removed from the list shortly after its publication after the Saudi regime threatened to reduce its funding in UN relief programs by millions of dollars.
Despite various peace conferences, there are no current solutions to resolve the ongoing conflict. The Franco-Saudi conference in Paris, in June this year, was a good initiative. However, the Houthis weren’t invited, and not long after the conference, Saudi attacked the Yemen port of Hodeidah. As to the one in Geneva (September 2018), the Houthis were invited to the table but never showed up.
It seems the only concrete solution lies within an agreement between Iran and Saudi Arabia, to alleviate the geopolitical situation. Although it does seem idealistic, there could be ways to resolve the issue, such as through the US’ influence in the conflict and region. Their current pressure on Iran, achieved through the recent economic sanctions (linked to the nuclear deal Iran has been excluded from) could be used to leverage the halt of support to the Houthis in Yemen.
The US could even go beyond pressuring the Middle Eastern countries, by engaging Russia, which also has a foothold in the region with its fast-growing relations with Iran and its support for Assad’s regime in Syria. Yet, while Saudi Arabia should be held accountable for war crimes committed in Yemen, the US, and especially the Trump administration, is too focused on maintaining a foothold in the region to denounce Saudi Arabia’s actions. Today the humanitarian crisis remains at a standstill, and its ultimate outcome rests on larger geopolitical moves.
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