Famine in Yemen (2016–present)

Since 2016, a famine has been ongoing in Yemen which started during the Yemeni Civil War.[10] More than 85,000 children have died as a result of the famine as of 2018. In May 2020, UNICEF described Yemen as "the largest humanitarian crisis in the world", and estimated that 80% of the population, over 24 million people, were in need of humanitarian assistance.[11] The famine is being compounded by an outbreak of cholera, which is resulting in 5,000 new cases daily in June 2017.[12] Devastation of Yemeni infrastructure, health, water and sanitation systems and facilities by Saudi-led coalition air strikes led to the spread of cholera.[13][14][15] UNICEF says that there have been many attacks on water systems in Yemen cutting of water to many.[16]

Famine in Yemen
المجاعة في اليمن
CountryYemen
Period2016–present
Total deathsMore than 85,000 children (adults unknown)
(2018 estimate)[1][2][3][4][5]
Death rateAt least 130 children (adults unknown) per day
(December 2016–November 2017 estimate)[6][7]
Observations
Consequences2016–2020 Yemen cholera outbreak

After 5 November 2017, the famine in Yemen was compounded by Saudi Arabia, who tightened its sea, air and land blockade of Yemen.[17][18][19][20][21] According to the manager of Al Hudaydah port, which is under the control of the Houthis, medicine and food cannot go to Al-Hudaydah, since Saudi-led airstrikes destroyed the port's industrial cranes in August 2015.[22] On 23 November 2017, the blockade was partially but not fully lifted,[23] and some humanitarian supplies were allowed into the country.[24]

In October 2018, the United Nations warned that 13 million people face starvation in what could be "the worst famine in the world in 100 years."[25] The following month, a report by Save the Children estimated that 85,000 children under the age of five have died from starvation.[26]

According to the Global Hunger Index, Yemen is suffering from the highest hunger score in the world, after Central African Republic.[27]

Causes

Saudi Arabian-led intervention

The famine is the direct result of the Saudi Arabian-led intervention in Yemen and blockade.[28][29][30][31] Yemen was already the most impoverished nation in the Arabian Peninsula and the Middle East, and Al Hudaydah one of the poorest cities of Yemen, but the war and the naval blockade[32][33] by the Saudi-led coalition and the United States Navy[34] made the situation much worse. Fishing boats, the main livelihood of Al Hudaydah's residents, were destroyed by Saudi airstrikes,[35][36][37] leaving them without any means to provide for their families.[38][39] As a result, one child dies every ten minutes on average.[40] A UN panel of experts found that Saudi Arabia is purposefully obstructing the delivery of humanitarian aid into Yemen.[41]

Saudi Arabia was reported to be deliberately targeting means of food production and distribution in Yemen[42] by bombing farms,[43][44] fishing boats,[45] ports,[46] food storages, food factories,[47][48] and other businesses[49] in order to exacerbate famine. These actions led to the UN accusing the Saudi-led coalition of committing war crimes and having a "complete disregard for human life".[50][49][51][52][53] 1,500 schools were damaged and destroyed during Yemeni Civil War.[54] After Saudi-backed Hadi's forces retook Mocha from Houthis they barred fishermen from working.[55][56] The Union of Yemeni fishermen accused the coalition of waging war against fishermen.[57]

U.S. Senator Chris Murphy accused the United States of complicity in Yemen's humanitarian crisis, saying: "Thousands and thousands inside Yemen today are dying. ... This horror is caused in part by our decision to facilitate a bombing campaign that is murdering children and to endorse a Saudi strategy inside Yemen that is deliberately using disease and starvation and the withdrawal of humanitarian support as a tactic."[58]

The British researcher Alex de Waal has considered the famine in Yemen as

The world’s worst since North Korea in the 1990s and the one in which Western responsibility is clearest... Britain has sold at least £4.5 billion in arms to Saudi Arabia and £500 million to the UAE since the war began. The US role is even bigger: Trump authorised arms sales to the Saudis worth $110 billion last May. Yemen will be the defining famine crime of this generation, perhaps this century.[59]

Doctors Without Borders (MSF) has been assisting victims of the famine and the cholera outbreak, as well as providing mental health assistance to those who have been affected by the war.[60]

Houthi food confiscation

Houthi rebels have been accused of unlawfully confiscating food and medicine from civilians under their control by organizations including Human Rights Watch (HRW), MSF, and the World Food Programme (WFP), with a WFP survey finding that food aid was not reaching the majority of those eligible to receive it in Houthi–held Sanaʽa and Saada.[61][62]

2016

Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi's decision to relocate the Central Bank of Yemen to Aden in September 2016 was reported to have exacerbated the vulnerable living conditions of the population. The move "was aimed primarily at disabling the Houthi-Saleh administered bureaucracy based in Sana’a. Instead, it provoked a severe liquidity crisis that has fueled famine, as somewhere between 8.5 million and 10 million Yemenis rely on public sector salaries that have been unpaid for more than a year."[63]

Sana'a Centre for Strategical Studies recorded that the banking crisis in fact began in early 2010 when American banks began closing the accounts of Yemeni banks, and with the start of the conflict in 2011, as Yemen came under UN Chapter 7 jurisdiction. "Large European and American banks ceased to interact with Yemeni banks completely. Yemeni banks became both unable to honor customer requests to withdraw cash – leading to further hoarding outside the banking system – and had no domestic currency to deposit at the Central Bank of Yemen. These multiple, interrelated and mutually reinforcing factors helped instigate a severe public sector cash liquidity crisis in mid-2016."[64]

2017
Protest against U.S. involvement in the military intervention in Yemen, New York City, 2017

More than 50,000 children in Yemen died from starvation during 2017.[1][2][3][4]

On 5 November 2017, the Saudi-led coalition began blocking all fuel shipments to Yemen, causing farmers to abandon modern equipment like tractors and forcing hospitals to function without generators.[65][66]

On 11 December 2017, Jamie McGoldrick, the UN's humanitarian coordinator for Yemen, affirmed that 8 million in the country are in danger of famine unless access to immediate humanitarian aid is allowed.[67][68] On 13 December 2017, USAID administrator, Mark Andrew Green, stated that there are no signs that the blockade had been in any way eased and Yemeni ports are still fully blocked.[69][70]

According to The Economist, another major cause of the famine is the popularity of the cultivation and consumption of khat, which requires a significant amount of water to grow in addition to being the most popular drug in Yemen.[9] Khat cultivation is monopolised by the Houthi rebels.[9]

2018

In July 2018, a 25% increase in severe hunger cases in Yemen compared to 2017 was reported.[71]

In a September 2018 column in The New York Times, Nicholas Kristof stated that the United States is supporting crimes against humanity in Yemen, adding that "America is helping to kill, maim and starve Yemeni children. At least eight million Yemenis are at risk of starvation from an approaching famine caused not by crop failures but by our actions and those of our allies. The United Nations has called it the world's worst humanitarian crisis, and we own it."[72]

In October 2018, World Peace Foundation released a report documenting systematic targeting and destruction of food production and distribution infrastructure in Yemen by the Saudi-led coalition.[73]

On 31 October 2018, the United States and the United Kingdom, Saudi Arabia's biggest arm suppliers, called for a ceasefire in the conflict in Yemen. A press release from the United States Secretary of State, Michael Pompeo, stated "A cessation of hostilities and vigorous resumption of a political track will help ease the humanitarian crisis as well. It is time to end this conflict, replace conflict with compromise, and allow the Yemeni people to heal through peace and reconstruction."[74] On 10 November 2018, the U.S. announced it would no longer refuel coalition aircraft operating over Yemen.[75] The U.S. continues its backing of the Saudi-led intervention with weapons sales and intelligence sharing.[76]

In November 2018, according to the New York Times report, 1.8 million children in Yemen are severely malnourished.[77]

2019

On 3 August 2019, a United Nations report said the US, UK and France may be complicit in committing war crimes in Yemen by selling weapons and providing support to the Saudi-led coalition which is using the starvation of civilians as a tactic of warfare.[78][79]

2020

As of March 2020, UNICEF estimates that 2 million children under the age of 5 suffer from acute malnutrition and require treatment.[80]

According to a report by the Food and Agriculture Organization (FAO), the United Nations children’s agency and the World Food Programme (WFP) and partners, 40 per cent of the Yemen’s population was expected to suffer from acute food insecurity because of the war, flood, coronavirus and locust swarms, by the end of 2020. Within 6 months “high levels of acute food insecurity” was estimated to increase from 2 million to 3.2 million, even if the food aid was maintained.[81]

gollark: Is it the year of the Macron desktop, or just Macron?
gollark: Muahahaha. SOON, it will be 2021, and my plans can be realized.
gollark: Only in case of BGP issues.
gollark: It's necessary for wide-scale interhive communication without NAT.
gollark: They don't display proper hivemind behavior, [REDACTED], IPv6 capability, or yellowness.

See also

References
  1. "50,000 children in Yemen have died of starvation and disease so far this year, monitoring group says". Associated Press.
  2. "More than 50,000 Yemeni children are now expected to die by the end of 2017". The Independent. 15 November 2017. Retrieved 21 November 2017.
  3. "50,000 children dead: UK-US-Saudi war on Yemen enters horrific new stage -- Sott.net". Sott.net.
  4. Patrick Wintour (16 November 2017). "Saudis must lift Yemen blockade or 'untold' thousands will die, UN agencies warn". The Guardian.
  5. "Parents are being forced to watch their children starve to death in Yemen". The Independent.
  6. "UNICEF: One child dies every 10 minutes in Yemen". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
  7. "50,000 children in Yemen have died of starvation and disease so far this year, monitoring group says". Chicago Tribune. Associated Press. Retrieved 22 December 2017.
  8. "US involvement in the Yemen war just got deeper". Public Radio International. Retrieved 23 February 2018.
  9. "The drug that is starving Yemen". The Economist. 4 January 2018. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
  10. Graham-Harrison, Emma; agencies (4 October 2016). "Yemen famine feared as starving children fight for lives in hospital". The Guardian.
  11. "Yemen conflict: A devastating toll for children". UNICEF.
  12. "Yemen faces world's worst cholera outbreak - UN". BBC News. 25 June 2017. Retrieved 28 June 2017.
  13. Snyder, Stephen (15 May 2017). "Thousands in Yemen get sick in an entirely preventable cholera outbreak". PRI. Retrieved 21 December 2019.
  14. "U.S. Support "Vital" to Saudi Bombing of Yemen, Targeting Food Supplies as Millions Face Famine". Democracy Now!.
  15. Kennedy, Jonathan (2 August 2017). "Blame the Saudis for Yemen's cholera outbreak – they are targeting the people". The Guardian.
  16. "Access to water continues to be jeopardized for millions of children in war-torn Yemen". UNICEF.
  17. "'Catastrophic' Saudi Blockade on Yemen Could Starve Millions". Time. Retrieved 21 November 2017.
  18. Dewan, Angela. "Saudi blockade pushing Yemen to 'worst famine in decades'". CNN. Retrieved 21 November 2017.
  19. "'Catastrophic' Yemen crisis grows as blockade cuts Red Cross and UN aid". ABC. 8 November 2017. Retrieved 21 November 2017.
  20. "Famine survey warns of thousands dying daily in Yemen if ports stay closed". 21 November 2017. Retrieved 22 November 2017 – via Reuters.
  21. "Saudi Arabia is using famine as a weapon of war - Opinion". Newsweek. 28 November 2017.
  22. Yemen Is Still Being Starved to Death theamericanconservative.com Retrieved 13 December 2017.
  23. Erickson, Amanda (22 November 2017). "Saudi Arabia just reopened two key ports in Yemen. That won't prevent a famine". Washington Post. Retrieved 25 November 2017.
  24. Erickson, Amanda (1 December 2017). "Saudi Arabia lifted its blockade of Yemen. It's not nearly enough to prevent a famine". Washington Post. Retrieved 5 December 2017.
  25. "Yemen could be 'worst famine in 100 years'". BBC News=. 15 October 2018. Retrieved 15 October 2018.
  26. McKernan, Bethan (21 November 2018). "Yemen: up to 85,000 young children dead from starvation". The Guardian. Retrieved 22 November 2018.
  27. "2019 Global Hunger Index Results - Global, Regional, and National Trends". Global Hunger Index (GHI) - peer-reviewed annual publication designed to comprehensively measure and track hunger at the global, regional, and country levels. Retrieved 14 June 2020.
  28. "Saudi de facto blockade starves Yemen of food and medicine". Reuters. Retrieved 21 November 2017.
  29. "Yemen under de facto blockade". Reuters. Retrieved 21 November 2017.
  30. Kristof, Nicholas (31 August 2017). "The Photos the U.S. and Saudi Arabia Don't Want You to See". New York Times. Retrieved 22 November 2017.
  31. McKernan, Bethan (7 November 2018). "Battle rages in Yemen's vital port as showdown looms". The Guardian. Retrieved 7 November 2018. The port has been blockaded by the Saudi-led coalition for the past three years, a decision aid organisations say has been the main contributing factor to the famine that threatens to engulf half of Yemen’s 28 million population.
  32. Felipe Bueno (6 February 2017). "Food Crisis in Conflict-Ridden Yemen Borders on Famine". The Diplomatic Envoy. South Orange, New Jersey: School of Diplomacy and International Relations at Seton Hall University.
  33. Julian Borger (4 June 2016). "Saudi-led naval blockade leaves 20m Yemenis facing humanitarian disaster". The Guardian.
  34. Stephen Snyder (14 October 2016). "US involvement in the Yemen war just got deeper". The World. PRI.
  35. "UN humanitarian coordinator "shocked" by Saudi atrocities in Yemen -- Sott.net". Sott.net.
  36. "Bombing of schools by Saudi Arabia-led coalition a flagrant attack on future of Yemen's children". Amnesty International.
  37. "Yemen". Doctors Without Borders - USA.
  38. Saeed Kamali Dehghan; Ahmad Algohbary (8 February 2017). "Yemen's food crisis: 'We die either from the bombing or the hunger'". The Guardian.
  39. Ahmed Al-Haj (16 September 2016). "Ravaged by conflict, Yemen's coast faces rising malnutrition". U.S. News & World Report. Associated Press. Retrieved 21 September 2016.
  40. "UNICEF: One child dies every 10 minutes in Yemen". Al Jazeera. 12 December 2016.
  41. "Saudi-led coalition threatens Yemen by blocking aid -U.N. report". Reuters.
  42. "U.S. Fingerprints on Attacks Obliterating Yemen's Economy". New York Times. 14 November 2016.
  43. MENAFN. "Saudi air campaign targets Yemen's food supplies". Retrieved 5 January 2018.
  44. "Saudi Arabia 'deliberately targeting impoverished Yemen's farms and agricultural industry'". The Independent. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  45. "Over 100 civilians killed in a month, including fishermen, refugees, as Yemen conflict reaches two-year mark". ReliefWeb. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  46. "Saudi-led coalition strikes Yemeni port, civilians at risk". Reuters. 10 February 2017.
  47. "Air strikes kill at least 16 civilians in Yemen's Hodeidah: medics, residents". Reuters.
  48. "In Yemen, 34 killed in bottling factory bombing". CNN.
  49. "Bombing Businesses - Saudi Coalition Airstrikes on Yemen's Civilian Economic Structures". Human Rights Watch. 11 July 2016.
  50. "Saudi-led air strikes in Yemen killed 68 civilians in one day, UN says". The Independent. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  51. "The UN just accused Saudi Arabia led coalition of war crimes". The Independent. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  52. "Death toll from Saudi airstrike on Yemeni wedding rises to 88: report". AMN - Al-Masdar News | المصدر نيوز. 23 April 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  53. "Yemen Devastated by Saudi-Influenced Famine". Americans for Democracy & Human Rights in Bahrain. 24 January 2018. Retrieved 5 June 2018.
  54. "Huge spike in Yemen violence as civilian deaths rise by 164% in four months". The Guardian.
  55. Craig, Iona (12 December 2017). "Bombed into famine: how Saudi air campaign targets Yemen's food supplies". The Guardian.
  56. "Saudi Arabia 'deliberately targeting impoverished Yemen's farms and agricultural industry'". The Independent. 23 October 2016.
  57. Craig, Iona (12 December 2017). "Bombed into famine: how Saudi air campaign targets Yemen's food supplies". The Guardian. Retrieved 5 January 2018.
  58. "Congress Votes to Say It Hasn’t Authorized War in Yemen, Yet War in Yemen Goes On". The Intercept. 14 November 2017.
  59. "Monuments to Famine". London Review of Books. 7 March 2019.
  60. "Yemen". Doctors Without Borders - USA. Retrieved 6 November 2018.
  61. "Yemen: Houthis Block Vital Goods into Taizz". Human Rights Watch. 31 January 2016. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  62. "UN threatens to suspend aid to Yemen amid theft by Houthi rebels". The Daily Telegraph. 31 December 2018. Retrieved 18 February 2019.
  63. MERIP. 30 January 2018. "Yemen Dispatch". Middle East Research and Information Project website.
  64. Sana'a Centre. 4 June 2017. "Addressing Yemen’s Most Critical Challenges: Practical Short-Term Recommendations". Sana'a Centre for Strategical Studies website.
  65. "Exclusive: Saudi-led blockade cuts fuel lifeline to Yemen". Reuters. 6 December 2017.
  66. "17 million in Yemen need food - now hospitals and water pumps will run out of fuel in three weeks". AFP.
  67. Al Jazeera News. (11 December 2017). "More than 8 million 'a step away' from famine in Yemen". Al Jazeera website Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  68. United Nations. (11 December 2017). "UN aid official in Yemen urges lifting of blockade, says millions a ‘step away from famine’". UN News Centre website Retrieved 11 December 2017.
  69. "U.S. aid chief says no sign Yemen port blockade easing to allow aid in". Reuters. 12 December 2017.
  70. "US aid chief says no sign Yemen port blockade easing to allow aid in". www.worldnews.easybranches.com. Archived from the original on 13 December 2017. Retrieved 6 June 2018.
  71. Kanso, Heba. "Yemen close to famine after port offensive, aid groups warn". Reuters.
  72. Kristof, Nicholas (26 September 2018). "Be Outraged by America's Role in Yemen's Misery". The New York Times. Retrieved 24 October 2018.
  73. "A new report by Martha Mundy – World Peace Foundation".
  74. "Ending the Conflict in Yemen". U.S. Department of State. Retrieved 6 November 2018.
  75. Ryan Browne, Barbara Starr (10 November 2018). "US to stop air refueling of Saudi-led coalition in Yemen". CNN. Retrieved 11 November 2018.
  76. "U.N.: A Yemeni Child Dies Every 10 Min. from War-Caused Disease, Hunger". DemocracyNow!. 5 November 2018. Retrieved 7 November 2018.
  77. "Yemen Girl Who Turned World's Eyes to Famine Is Dead". nytimes. Retrieved 1 November 2018.
  78. "U.N. Says Western Countries May Be Complicit in Yemen War Crimes Days After Air Raid Kills 100 Prisoners". Democracy Now. Retrieved 3 September 2019.
  79. Wintour, Patrick (3 September 2019). "UK, US and France may be complicit in Yemen war crimes – UN report". The Guardian. Retrieved 4 September 2019.
  80. "Yemen crisis". www.unicef.org. Retrieved 5 June 2020.
  81. "Yemen faces 'perfect storm' of hunger amid the coronavirus outbreak and war, UN warns". The Telegraph. Retrieved 22 July 2020.
This article is issued from Wikipedia. The text is licensed under Creative Commons - Attribution - Sharealike. Additional terms may apply for the media files.