Bin Salman’s war in Yemen: “The storm of horrific misery”
War in Yemen
Fierce war, devastating conflict, overwhelming chaos, starvation approaching, epidemics, extreme poverty, tragic devastation, and unparalleled misery in the twenty-first century; The roots of this crisis go back to March 2015, when the Saudi Crown Prince Mohamed bin Salman, who was then Minister of Defense, formed an alliance of Arab countries and entered the war with the massive air force, under the banner of “Decisive Storm”, expecting to force the Houthis to surrender. However, “Decisive Storm”, which should have settled the dispute and sent hope for the establishment of a state in Yemen that would guarantee the rights of the Yemeni people and provide them with a decent life, led to the outbreak of the largest humanitarian crisis the world is witnessing today.
UN reports documented thousands of missing persons, hundreds of thousands of deaths, and thousands of thousands of displaced persons, while famine and epidemics threaten the millions. These human rights reports disclose flagrant violations of international law and the rights of Yemeni civilians. Other reports disclosed the presence of European weapons in Yemen amid the lack of international monitoring and control. The Saudi crown prince went on with his actions without being told off by the US administration, as relations between Washington and Riyadh had strengthened over the past four years during the Trump administration. The White House is preparing to receive a new president who opposes bin Salman’s policies. He pledged in his election campaign to open the Yemen file and solve the tragedy that has afflicted the poorest Arab country for nearly six years. Currently, the Saudis are looking for solutions to save themselves.
Bin Salman has not killed civilians by direct attacks and intense bombing, but rather imposed a comprehensive land, sea, and air blockade, preventing the flow of urgent humanitarian and food aid to millions of families at a time when malnutrition reached record levels, putting the country on the brink of famine, with deadly epidemics such as cholera, Covid-19, and dengue fever spreading. The Saudi crown prince did not hesitate to pursue a policy of starvation as a means of aggression against Yemen amidst complete international silence and blatant Western and Arab complicity.
Accordingly, we in “Together for Justice” organisation call for an end to the Saudi aggression in Yemen, which has caused food insecurity in a country whose more than eighty percent of its population depends on humanitarian aid and three-quarters of them stand on the threshold of famine.
As we are sending alarms about the catastrophic humanitarian situation in Yemen, we demand the need for serious and rapid action to stop the escalating conflict, the economic decline, and the rescue of civilians from grave human rights violations, including what may amount to war crimes.
We call on the international community to put pressure on the Saudi regime to end the suffering of Yemen and withdraw its forces from Yemeni territory. We also call for a reduction in arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
