The war in Yemen has lasted for well over a year. Yemeni government forces, supported by Saudi Arabia, have been fighting Houthi rebels. The scale of death and destruction is significant. Press coverage has been minimal while global attention has been focused elsewhere. The conflict has stoked tensions between Sunni heavyweight Saudi Arabia and its Shiite rival Iran, which has been accused of smuggling weapons to the rebels.
The Royal Saudi Air Force has carried out thousands of sorties against the Houthis. International NGOs, such as Human Rights Watch, have cited damage to port facilities, hospitals and schools and have calculated the deaths in thousands. British and US governments have been criticized for supplying arms and ammunition to the Saudis, who in turn have been criticized for using them without sufficient regard for international humanitarian law. That may be in dispute – but the outcome of the fighting is not: thousands of Yemenis have died, millions of children are unable to attend school and some 80% of the population is in need of humanitarian support.
The war was probably avoidable and, like most wars, is unlikely to be decisive. It will be remembered mainly for the suffering imposed on innocent people.
Having worked in Yemen and Saudi Arabia in the past – diplomatically, militarily and commercially – I spent a little time last year advising the UK Department for International Development on humanitarian access into Yemen. Last month, United Nations-backed peace talks between the warring factions, hosted by the Kuwaiti government, finally got underway. There is a glimmer of hope that the talks might lead to an end of the fighting, at least in northern Yemen. I was recently in Kuwait as an advisor with the UN. As the only non-Arab, I attended daily meetings between senior military officers from each side, sitting together round a table and looking for ways to de-escalate the fighting and reduce tension. It was a good example of opposing sides working together in pursuit of peace
I hope the politicians on each side choose to follow this example in the coming days. If not, the war and the suffering will continue.