The dire situation in Yemen has worsened. But while their own suffering continues in virtual silence, hundreds of thousands of them still protest against Israel's bombing of Gaza in towns across Yemen.
Yemen, one of the world's poorest countries, has found itself thrust into the center of the war in Gaza. As if that were not unlikely enough, the Houthi militants, who control much of Yemen's population through a combination of force, fear, and massive external aid from Iran, are now in large numbers. He is considered a hero by many people.
The Houthis' actions, which have wreaked havoc on global shipping lanes in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, have given them a surge in popularity at home and unexpected influence and prestige abroad.
So when I interviewed one of the Houthi aides in Yemen this week, a cousin of the Houthi leader, he was all smiles.
“The whole world is with the Houthis,” he told me from his base in the capital, Sanaa. “They think we are the only ones fighting against Israel and protecting our Palestinian brothers and sisters.”
Indeed, the Houthi attacks on shipping lanes off the coast of Yemen have greatly refocused the attention of many political and global businesses, but it is now the heavily armed and Iranian-backed group that appears to have the upper hand. He is an extremist who has received a lot of attention.
Hans Grundberg, the UN special envoy for Yemen, has already warned that the situation could push Yemen back into a new cycle of war.
“What happens in the region affects Yemen, and what happens in Yemen can affect the region,” he told the UN Security Council last month (March 15). .
And while the international attention the Houthi attacks have garnered seems to have further agitated the militants, the international community appears powerless to stop them.
U.S. and British military attacks on Houthi bases in the north have failed to stop the insurgents from attacking ships. The longer this situation drags on, the more difficult negotiations for a lasting peace in the country will become, Grundberg told the UN. “We're more likely to change our calculations and change our plans.” their negotiation agenda. ”
And Houthi leaders appear to be well aware of this, with Mohammed al-Houthi telling Sky News: “This is not Yemen in 2015. We have the weapons, we have the capabilities, we have the targets. I have the ability,” he said. This is clearly a reference to the funds and ammunition built up with Iranian support.
He also vowed to continue attacking ships, saying: “If we don't stop the blockade of Gaza and the genocide against Gaza, we will be in for a surprise.”
Strategically important Yemen has been torn apart by a civil war that began nearly a decade ago. Iranian-backed Houthi militants seized control of the country's north and capital in 2015. But the south and Aden are run by internationally recognized authorities, which are supported by the United States, Britain and a Saudi-led coalition that includes the United Kingdom. United Arab Emirates.
The country is a patchwork of armed checkpoints run by rival factions and other competing fighting groups, all of which make travel and trade dangerous and extremely difficult. The country and its people have suffered tremendously from this protracted war, with both sides accused of widespread human rights violations and war crimes.
But a breakthrough appeared a year ago when rival regional powers Iran and Saudi Arabia agreed to work toward a durable peace deal. It lasted until October 7th. Hamas attacks on Israeli soil followed by Israeli airstrikes on Gaza since then.
Most Yemenis already tend to support Palestinian rights, but that support has reached new levels in the face of Israel's military operation inside the Gaza Strip, which has entered its sixth month.
Since November, international cargo ships have been forced to reroute due to repeated missile and drone attacks by Houthi militants. Longer and more expensive journeys around the Cape of Good Hope, avoiding the Red Sea, raised the prices of goods everywhere. As a result, the poorest countries with the poorest populations are the most severely affected. That includes Yemen.
We were at a bread distribution point in Aden set up by the British charity Action for Humanity and saw lines of hungry children and families waiting for free food. did.
The charity's Dr Shameera Islam Zulfiqar said it was making an already difficult situation even worse for many people.
“Many more people are food insecure and many more are water insecure,” she told us. “And it's going to take more than INGOs (charities) to bridge the gap in what's happening here.”
Next to the logistics hub, a dilapidated shantytown has grown up in recent years. It's a hodgepodge of wood, corrugated boards, discarded fabric, and torn tents hammered together to create a shelter for hundreds of people displaced by precarious situations old and new.
One resident said: “All the people are suffering. They are living hand to mouth… Some are begging, selling scrap, borrowing money… But it's very difficult. is.”
At Al-Sadaqa Hospital in Aden, doctors are despairing of the growing number of hungry children being brought in. Dr. Mohammed Raje directs us to the malnutrition ward, where he says he has just admitted three more babies overnight. “We're seeing an increase in the number of babies needing help,” he says. The problem of hunger appears to be getting worse.
Some of the wards we enter have young people who are sick and malnourished. But one ward stands out to us. Side by side in an adjoining hospital bed are two small babies struggling to stay in this world, cared for by nursing staff who are not at all sure they will succeed.
Both babies are painfully thin, with protruding ribs. A swollen belly and folds of extra wrinkled skin hanging from small, stick-like limbs. Both are exhausted from lack of food. Their mother is unable to feed them herself as they themselves are hungry and malnourished.
Their father does not earn enough to support the adults and children in the family. The fight to save these babies is Dr. Raje's most difficult task. “Every day, the number of cases of diarrhea and malnutrition is increasing,” he says. “When we have infections and diarrhea, we fear for them. We could lose them at any moment.”
Yemen is facing near economic collapse. With more than half of the country without access to clean water and currently facing a new cholera outbreak, fragile health systems are under great strain.
Emergency isolation tents have been set up on the premises of Al-Sadaqa Hospital to deal with the expected influx of cholera patients and additional numbers.
“Sick people are coming from all over Yemen,” said Dr. Saleh Dobahi. He is particularly concerned because it suggests there are several sources of the disease across the country. “It's because of water scarcity, poverty, sewage that affects food. The Yemeni people are poor,” he added. “And this time it appears to be a different strain of cholera, which is more potent. It's very worrying.”
The civil war has taken a toll on Yemen, turning the country into one of the world's worst humanitarian disasters. However, further tensions caused by the regional effects of the Gaza war could be devastating.
“First of all, the country is divided and has all kinds of problems, including inflation,” Dr. Dobahi said. “We are at war…and now we have another foreign war…so not only inside Yemen, but also outside Yemen.
“All of these things affect our lives, and they also affect our health…the health of our people.”
Alex Crawford reports from Yemen with cameraman Jake Britton, specialist producer Chris Cunningham and Yemeni producer Ahmed Bayder.