On September 29, an airstrike led by Saudi Arabia inside Yemen killed more than 130 people who were participating in a wedding. The bombing highlights the dangers facing Yemen, a strategically located LDC that is facing multiple conflicts.
The Saudi airstrikes were directed against the Houthi movement that has seized large parts of the country, including the capital Sana’a. The Houthis are Shi’ites that have been accused of being supported by Iran. Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, the former President of Yemen that the Houthis displaced from power, is a Sunni. In fact, some commentators state that the war in Yemen is a proxy war between Shi’ite Iran and Sunni Saudi Arabia.
Whatever the cause of the war, it is clear that the Yemeni people are suffering tremendously. According to the United Nations Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (UN-OCHA), the humanitarian crisis in Yemen is among the worst in the world. OCHA states that 21 million people are being affected by the crisis. More than 11 million have been targeted for humanitarian assistance. The latest report from OCHA states that Yemenis suffer from shortages of fuel, medicines, and water. Fuel is especially in short supply as imports have not reached the country since mid-August.
The Yemen Humanitarian Response Plan (YHRP) is now only 44 percent funded. This shows that the humanitarian crisis is likely to be prolonged for some time.
