Yemeni Civil War (2015–present)

On April 2015, United States National Security Council spokeswoman Bernadette Meehan stated that: "It remains our assessment that Iran does not exert command and control over the Houthis in Yemen".[197][198]

The Houthis have long been accused of being proxies for Iran, since they both follow Shia Islam (although the Iranians are Twelve-Imam Shias and the Houthis are Zaidi Shia). The United States and Saudi Arabia have alleged that the Houthis receive weapons and training from Iran.[199] While the Houthis and the Iranian government have denied any military affiliation,[200] Iranian supreme leader Ali Khamenei openly announced his "spiritual" support of the movement in a personal meeting with the Houthi spokesperson Mohammed Abdul Salam in Tehran, in the midst of ongoing conflicts in Aden in 2019.[201][202] Also, IRGC commander Nasser Shabani was quoted by the Fars News Agency, the semi-official news agency of the Iranian government, as saying, "We (IRGC) told Yemenis [Houthi rebels] to strike two Saudi oil tankers, and they did it," on 7 August 2018.[203][204] The African nation of Eritrea has also been accused of funneling Iranian material to the Houthis,[205] as well as offering medical care for injured Houthi fighters.[206] The Eritrean government has called the allegations "groundless" and said after the outbreak of open hostilities that it views the Yemeni crisis "as an internal matter".[205] According to a secret United Nations document, North Korea had aided the Houthis by selling weapons.[207][208]

The Yemeni government meanwhile has enjoyed significant international backing from the United States and Persian Gulf monarchies.[209] U.S. drone strikes were conducted regularly in Yemen during Hadi's presidency in Sanaʽa, usually targeting Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.[210] The United States was also a major supplier of weapons to the Yemeni government, although according to the Pentagon, hundreds of millions of dollars' worth of that material has gone missing since it was delivered.[211] Saudi Arabia provided financial aid to Yemen until late 2014, when it suspended it amid the Houthis' takeover of Sanaʽa and increasing influence over the Yemeni government.[212] According to Amnesty International, the United Kingdom also supplied weaponry used by Saudi-led coalition to strike targets in Yemen.[213] Amnesty International also says that U.S.-based Raytheon Company supplied a laser-guided bomb that killed six civilians on June 28, 2019.[214]

On 19 March 2015, the troops loyal to Hadi clashed with those who refused to recognize his authority in the Battle of Aden Airport. The forces under General Abdul-Hafez al-Saqqaf were defeated, and al-Saqqaf fled toward Sanaʽa.[215] In apparent retaliation for the routing of al-Saqqaf, warplanes reportedly flown by Houthi pilots bombed Hadi's compound in Aden.[216]

After 20 March 2015 Sanaʽa mosque bombings, in a televised speech, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, the leader of the Houthis, said his group's decision to mobilize for war was "imperative" under current circumstances and that Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and its affiliates—among whom he counts Hadi—would be targeted, as opposed to southern Yemen and its citizens.[217] President Hadi declared Aden to be Yemen's temporary capital while Sanaʽa remained under Houthi control.[218][219]

Also, the same day as the mosque bombings, al-Qaeda militants captured the provincial capital of Lahij, Al Houta District after killing about 20 soldiers before being driven out several hours later.[220]

Hadi reiterated in a speech on 21 March 2015 that he was the legitimate president of Yemen and declared, "We will restore security to the country and hoist the flag of Yemen in Sanaʽa, instead of the Iranian flag."[221] He also declared Aden to be Yemen's "economic and temporary capital" due to the Houthi occupation of Sanaʽa, which he pledged would be retaken.[222]

In Sanaʽa, the Houthi Revolutionary Committee appointed Major General Hussein Khairan as Yemen's new Defence Minister and placed him in overall command of the military offensive.[223][224]

On 22 March 2015, Houthi forces backed by troops loyal to Saleh entered Taiz, Yemen's third-largest city, and quickly took over its key points. They encountered little resistance, although one protester was shot dead and five were injured.[225][226][227] Western media outlets began to suggest Yemen was sliding into civil war as the Houthis from the north confronted holdouts in the south.[228][229][230]

On 14 December 2015, the pro-Saleh Yemeni Army and Houthi militants carried out a strike with a Tochka ballistic missile against a military camp that was being used by troops of the Saudi-led coalition, south-west of the city of Taiz.

On 23 March 2015, Houthi forces advanced towards the strategic Bab-el-Mandeb strait, a vital corridor through which much of the world's maritime trade passes.[231] The next day, fighters from the group reportedly entered the port of Mocha.[232][233]

On 31 March 2015, Houthi fighters entered a coastal military base on the strait after the 17th Armoured Division of the Yemen Army opened the gates and turned over weapons to them.[234]

On 2 April 2015, Mahamoud Ali Youssouf, the foreign minister of Djibouti, said the Houthis placed heavy weapons and fast attack boats on Perim and a smaller island in the Bab-el-Mandeb strait. He warned that the weapons posed "a big danger" to his country, commercial shipping traffic, and military vessels.[235]

On 24 March 2015, Houthi forces seized administrative buildings in Dhale (or Dali) amid heavy fighting, bringing them closer to Aden.[236] However, Houthi fighters were swiftly dislodged from Ad Dali' and Kirsh by Hadi-loyal forces.[237]

Fighting over Dhale continued even as the Houthis advanced further south and east. On 31 March 2015, Hadi loyalists clashed with the Houthis and army units loyal to Saleh.[238]

On 1 April 2015, a pro-Houthi army brigade was said to have "disintegrated" after being pummeled by coalition warplanes in Ad Dali. The commander of the 33rd Brigade reportedly fled, and groups of pro-Houthi troops withdrew to the north.[239]

Three Saudi F-15Cs from 13th Squadron

The city reportedly fell into pro-government hands by the end of May.[240]

On 24 March 2015, in the Lahij Governorate, heavy fighting erupted between Houthis and pro-Hadi fighters.[236] The next day, Al Anad Air Base, 60 kilometers from Aden, was captured by the Houthis and their allies. The base had recently been abandoned by United States of America USSOCOM troops.[241][242] Defense Minister Mahmoud al-Subaihi, one of Hadi's top lieutenants, was captured by the Houthis in Al Houta and transferred to Sanaʽa.[243][244] Houthi fighters also advanced to Dar Saad, a small town, 20 km north of Aden.[245]

On 26 March 2015, after clashes erupted in Aden, Hadi loyalists counterattacked as a Saudi-led military intervention got underway. Artillery shelled Al Anad Air Base, forcing some of its Houthi occupants to flee the area.[246] Saudi airstrikes also hit Al Anad.[247] Despite the airstrikes, the southern offensive continued.[248][249]

Houthi offensive on Aden

Pro-government counteroffensive

In Aden, military officials said militias and military units loyal to Hadi had "fragmented" by 25 March, speeding the Houthi advance. They said the Houthis were fighting Hadi's troops on five different fronts.[250] Aden International Airport suspended all flights.[251] Fighting reached Aden's outskirts on 25 March 2015, with pro-Saleh soldiers taking over Aden International Airport and clashes erupting at an army base.[252][253] Hadi reportedly fled his "temporary capital" by boat as the unrest worsened.[244] On 26 March 2015, he resurfaced in the Saudi capital, Riyadh, where he arrived by plane and was met by Saudi Prince Mohammad bin Salman Al Saud.[157]

Over the following days, Houthi and allied army forces encircled Aden[254][255] and hemmed in Hadi's holdouts, although they encountered fierce resistance from the embattled president's loyalists and armed city residents. They began pressing into the city center on 29 March 2015 despite coalition air strikes and shelling from Egyptian Navy warships offshore.[256]

On 2 April 2015, the compound that has been used as a temporary presidential palace was taken by the Houthis,[257] and fighting moved into the central Crater and Al Mualla districts.[258]

A small contingent of foreign troops were reportedly deployed in Aden by early May, fighting alongside anti-Houthi militiamen in the city. Saudi Arabia denied the presence of ground troops,[259] while Hadi's government claimed the troops were Yemeni special forces who had received training in the Persian Gulf and were redeployed to fight in Aden.[260]

President Hadi meets U.S. Secretary of State John Kerry in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, 7 May 2015

On 21 July 2015, forces loyal to Hadi recaptured Aden with support from Saudi Arabia in Operation Golden Arrow after months of fighting. This allowed supplies to finally reach the port city giving civilians desperately-needed aid.

On 22 July 2015, a Saudi military plane landed in Aden international airport filled with relief aid. Also, a UN ship docked in Aden carrying much-needed relief supplies, the first UN vessel to reach the city in four months. Another ship sent by the UAE also delivered medical aid. On 21 July 2015, a UAE technical team had arrived to repair the tower and passenger terminal at Aden international airport, heavily damaged in clashes. On 24 July 2015, a military plane from the UAE arrived filled with relief aid.[261]

On 4 August 2015, Houthi forces were pushed back from the Al-Anad airbase, by Pro-Hadi forces.[262]

On 17 October 2015, Saudi Arabia confirmed the arrival of Sudanese troops into Aden for the purpose of bolstering the Saudi-led coalition.[263][264]

In January 2016, new conflict began in Aden, with ISIL and AQAP controlling neighborhoods in the city.[265]

The Houthis racked up a series of victories in the Abyan Governorate east of Aden in the days following their entrance into Hadi's provisional capital, taking control of Shuqrah and Zinjibar on the coast and winning the allegiance of a local army brigade, but they also encountered resistance from both pro-Hadi army brigadiers and al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula militants.[266] Zinjibar and Jaar were recaptured by AQAP on 2 December 2015.[267] In 20 February 2016, the southern Abyan also captured by AQAP linked them with their headquarters in Mukalla.[268]

As of February 2016, pro-Hadi forces had managed to enter Sanaa Governorate by capturing the Nihm District killing dozens of Houthi fighters. They continued their advance, capturing some cities and villages.[269]

On 31 January 2020, Houthi fighters recaptured the entire Sana'a province including Nihm district from the Hadi Government.[270]

Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula took control of Mukalla in the eastern Hadhramaut Governorate on 2 April 2015, driving out soldiers defending the city with mortar fire and springing some 300 inmates from prison, including a local al-Qaeda leader.[271][272]

Local tribal fighters aligned with Hadi surrounded and entered Mukalla on 4 April 2015, retaking parts of the city and clashing with both al-Qaeda militants and army troops.[273] Still, the militants remained in control of about half of the town. In addition, al-Qaeda fighters captured a border post with Saudi Arabia in an attack that killed two soldiers.[274]

On 13 April 2015, Southern militia said they took control of the army base loyal to the Houthis near Balhaf.[275] Mukalla city was recaptured from AQAP in late April 2016, after UAE and Hadi loyalists troops entered the city, killing some 800 AQAP fighters.[276]

On 12 June 2015, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula leader Nasir al-Wuhayshi was killed in a US drone strike in Mukalla.[277]

Although the Houthis took control of Lahij on the road to Aden, resistance continued in the Lahij Governorate. Ambushes and bombings struck Houthi supply lines to the Aden front, with a land mine killing a reported 25 Houthi fighters on their way to Aden on 28 March 2015.[278]

Fighting also centered on the Shabwa Province, in the oil-rich Usaylan region, where Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and Ansar al-Sharia hold sway. On 29 March 2015, 38 were killed in fighting between the Houthis and Sunni tribesmen. Tribal sources confirmed the death toll, and claimed only 8 of them were from their side, with the other 30 either Houthis or their allies from the Yemeni military.[279]

On 9 April 2015, the Houthis and their allies seized the provincial capital of Ataq. The takeover was facilitated by local tribal chiefs and security officials.[280] AQAP seized Azzan, and Habban in early February 2016.[281][282]

On 22 March 2015, in the province of Ma'rib, 6 members of pro Hadi tribes were killed during fighting against Houthis.[226]

On 23 March 2015, 15 Houthis and 5 tribesmen were killed in clashes in the Al Bayda Governorate.[283] During the fight between Hadi loyalists and Houthi militiamen in Sanaʽa, the Ethiopian embassy was reportedly struck by shelling on 3 April 2015. The Ethiopian government said the attack appeared to be unintentional. No injuries at the embassy were reported.[284]

On 7 April 2015, armed tribesmen drove off Houthis who had set up a makeshift camp in southern Ibb Governorate and seized their weapons.[285]

Between 17 and 18 April 2015, at least 30 people were killed when the Houthis and allied army units attacked a pro-Hadi military base in Taiz. The dead included 8–16 pro-Hadi and 14–19 Houthi fighters,[286][287] as well as 3 civilians.[288] Another report put the number of dead at 85.[289]

On the morning of 19 April 2015, 10 more Houthi and four pro-Hadi fighters were killed.[290]

A pro-Hadi official claimed 150 pro-Houthi and 27 tribal fighters had been killed in fighting in Ma'rib province between 2 and 21 April 2015.[291]

On 4 September 2015 a Houthi missile hit an ammunition dump at a military base in Ma'rib killing 45 UAE, 10 Saudi and 5 Bahraini soldiers.[292]

On 16 October 2015, Houthis and allied forces reportedly seized control of a military base in the town of Mukayris, pushing opponents out of southern Bayda.[293]

On 6 January 2016, Hadi loyalists captured the strategic port of Midi District, but insurgents backed by the Houthi government continued making attacks in and around the city.

Saudi soldier from the First Airborne Brigade conversing with an Emirati soldier in Yemen, June 2016.

A pro-Saleh protest in Sanaʽa against the Saudi-led intervention, March 2016

In response to rumors that Saudi Arabia could intervene in Yemen, Houthi commander Ali al-Shami boasted on 24 March 2015 that his forces would invade the larger kingdom and not stop at Mecca, but rather Riyadh.[294]

The following evening, answering a request by Yemen's internationally recognized government, Saudi Arabia began a military intervention alongside eight other Arab states and with the logistical support of the United States against the Houthis, bombing positions throughout Sanaʽa. In a joint statement, the nations of the Gulf Cooperation Council (with the exception of Oman) said they decided to intervene against the Houthis in Yemen at the request of Hadi's government.[295][296][297] King Salman of Saudi Arabia declared the Royal Saudi Air Force to be in full control of Yemeni airspace within hours of the operation beginning.[298] The airstrikes were aimed at hindering the Houthis' advance toward Hadi's stronghold in southern Yemen.[299]

Al Jazeera reported that Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, a Houthi commander appointed in February as President of the Revolutionary Committee, was injured by an airstrike in Sanaʽa on the first night of the campaign.[300]

Reuters reported that planes from Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, Sudan, Kuwait, United Arab Emirates, Qatar, and Bahrain are also taking part in the operation.[16] Iran condemned the Saudi-led airstrikes and urged an immediate end to attacks on Yemen.[301] Saudi Arabia requested that Pakistan commit forces as well, but Pakistan's parliament officially voted to remain neutral.[302] However, Pakistan agreed to provide support in line with a United Nations Security Council resolution, dispatching warships to enforce an arms embargo against the Houthis.[96][303]

On 21 April 2015, the bombing campaign was officially declared over, with Saudi officials saying they would begin Operation Restoring Hope as a combination of political, diplomatic, and military efforts to end the war.[304] Even still, airstrikes continued against Houthi targets, and fighting in Aden and Ad Dali' went on.[305]

The United Arab Emirates has also spearheaded an active role against fighting AQAP and ISIL-YP presence in Yemen through a partnership with the United States. In an Op-Ed in The Washington Post, Yousef Al Otaiba, the UAE ambassador to the United States, described that the intervention has reduced AQAP presence in Yemen to its weakest point since 2012 with many areas previously under their control liberated.[306] The ambassador claimed that more than 2,000 militants have been removed from the battlefield, with their controlled areas now having improved security and a better delivered humanitarian and development assistance such as to the port city of Mukalla and other liberated areas.[306]

An Associated Press investigation outlined that the military coalition in Yemen actively reduced AQAP in Yemen without military intervention, instead by offering them deals and even actively recruiting them in the coalition because "they’re considered exceptional fighters".[307] UAE Brigadier General Musallam Al Rashidi responded to the accusations by stating that Al Qaeda cannot be reasoned with and cited that they killed many of his soldiers.[308] The UAE military stated that accusations of allowing AQAP to leave with cash contradict their primary objective of depriving AQAP of its financial strength.[309] The notion of the coalition recruiting or paying AQAP has been thoroughly denied by the United States Pentagon with Colonel Robert Manning, spokesperson of the Pentagon, calling the news source "patently false".[310] The governor of Hadramut Faraj al-Bahsani, dismissed the accusations that Al Qaeda has joined with the coalition rank, explaining that if they did there would be sleeper cells and that he would be "the first one to be killed". According to The Independent, AQAP activity on social media as well as the number of terror attacks conducted by them has decreased since the Emirati intervention.[309]

A certification and assurance was announced by US Secretary of State Mike Pompeo stating that maximum efforts are being taken by the Saudi-led coalition to avoid civilian casualties in order to legally authorize the American military to refuel coalition military aircraft and to continue its support.[311][312] The Spanish government initially cancelled the sale of 400 laser-guided bombs to Saudi Arabia, however they have since reversed the decision.[313]

According to the Guardian news agency, more than 40 Saudi officers have been trained at prestigious British military colleges since the Saudi intervention in Yemen started.[314] These officers mostly trained at Sandhurst, the RAF’s school at Cranwell and the Royal Naval College in Dartmouth since 2015.[314] The MoD refused to state the earned money from the Saudi contracts, because it could influence Britain's relations with the Saudis.[314]

Abdul-Malik Badreddin, The Houthi leader condemned the UK's military cooperation and arms sales to the Saudi military.[314] According to a Sky News analysis, The UK has sold at least £5.7bn worth of arms to the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen since 2015.[314]

Priyanka Motaparthy, senior emergencies researcher at Human Rights Watch, said: “These revelations confirm once again how the UK military is working hand in glove with the Saudis.[314]

Houthi rebels released footage and images of destroyed Light Armoured Vehicles (LAV), which are reportedly manufactured by Canada and sold to Saudi Arabia for fighting in Yemen. Former Bloc Quebecois MP, Daniel Turp has called on Ottawa to cancel its arms deal with Riyadh.[315]

On April 25, 2020, the Campaign Against Arms Trade condemned the UK arms industry of serving human rights abusers and despotic regimes like the Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates. Reportedly, the sales have increased by 300% or £1bn in 2019, as compared to 2018. The jets exported by UK have been accused of killing tens of thousands of people and damaging the healthcare system during a crisis.[316]

In Egypt, the Yemeni foreign minister called for an Arab League military intervention against the Houthis.[295] Egyptian President Abdel Fattah al-Sisi floated the idea of a unified military force.[317]

The Arab League announced the formation of a unified military force to respond to conflict in Yemen and Libya.[318]

Since the mid-2000s, the United States has been carrying out targeted killings of Al-Qaeda militants in Yemen, although the U.S. government generally does not confirm involvement in specific attacks conducted by unmanned aerial vehicles as a matter of policy. The Bureau of Investigative Journalism documented 415 strikes in Pakistan and Yemen by 2015 since the September 11 attacks, and according to the organization's estimates, between 423 and 962 deaths are believed to have been civilians. However, Michael Morell, former deputy director of the CIA, affirmed that the numbers were significantly lower.[319]

During the civil war in Yemen, drone strikes have continued, targeting suspected leaders of Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Ibrahim al-Rubeish and Nasser bin Ali al-Ansi, two leading AQAP figures, were killed by U.S. drone strikes in the vicinity of Mukalla in 2015.[320][321] Approximately 240 suspected AQAP militants have been killed by American drone strikes since the civil war began.[322]

In 2013, Radhya Al-Mutawakel and Abdelrasheed Al-Faqih, Directors of Mwatana, published a joint report with Open Society Foundations titled 'Death by Drone', detailing evidence of civilian casualties and damage to civilian objects in nine US drone strikes.[323]

The Islamic State (IS) has proclaimed several provinces in Yemen and has urged its adherents to wage war against the Houthi movement, as well as against Zaydis in general.[324] ISIS militants have conducted bombing attacks in various parts of the country, particularly against mosques in Sanaʽa.[325][326]

On 6 October 2015, IS militants conducted a series of suicide bombings in Aden that killed 15 soldiers affiliated with the Hadi-led government and the Saudi-led coalition.[327] The attacks were directed against the al-Qasr hotel, which had been a headquarters for pro-Hadi officials, and also military facilities.[327] Yemeni officials and UAE state news agency declared that 11 Yemeni and 4 United Arab Emirates soldiers were killed in Aden due to 4 coordinated Islamic State suicide bombings. Prior to the claim of responsibility by the Islamic State, UAE officials blamed the Houthis and former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, for the attacks.[327]

A five-day ceasefire proposed by Saudi Arabia was accepted by the Houthis and their allies in the military on 10 May 2015. The ceasefire was intended to allow the delivery of humanitarian aid to the country.[328] The temporary truce began on the night of 12 May 2015 to allow the delivery of food, water, medical, and fuel aid throughout the country.[329]

On the fourth day of the truce, the fragile peace unraveled as fighting broke out in multiple southern governorates. At least three civilians in Aden and 12 in Taiz were killed on 16 May 2015, despite the ceasefire.[330] Agence France-Presse reported that "dozens" were killed in southern Yemen by the clashes, including 26 Houthi and 12 pro-Hadi fighters.[331]

Around the same time in 2015 reports surfaced in the media suggesting that Oman, which is the only Middle Eastern Monarchy not taking part in the coalition and has a border with Yemen, has presented a 7-point plan to both Houthis and Saudi Arabia. The Houthis accepted the peace talks and the 7-point plan while Saudi Arabia and Hadi government refused negotiations with the Houthis.[332] It has also been suggested that Oman was responsible to mediate a 24-hour ceasefire although analysts doubted if Oman could help bring about more rigid negotiations.[333][334]

The following parts constituted the planned initiative:

• The withdrawal of the Houthis and forces loyal to deposed president Ali Abdullah Saleh from all Yemeni cities and the return of military hardware and munitions seized from the Yemeni Army.
• The restoration of the president Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi and the government of Khalid Bahah.
• Early parliamentary and presidential elections.
• An agreement signed by all Yemeni parties.
• The conversion of Ansarullah into a political party.
• An international aid conference attended by donor states.
• Yemen entering the Gulf Cooperation Council.

On Saturday, 20 August 2016, there were demonstrations at Satin Sanaʽa's Sabeen square to show support for the Higher Political Council, the Shia Houthi governing body and former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh. The head of council pledged to form a full government within days.[335][336] The crowd size was variously placed at tens of thousands[335] and hundreds of thousands.[336] The crowd's demands were "quickly rejected by the United Nations and the country's internationally recognized government."[336] Meanwhile, Saudi planes roared above the population and bombed nearby leaving an unknown number of casualties.[337]

• On 29 January, the Yakla raid occurred. U.S. Navy SEALs executed a raid, President Barack Obama's national security aides had reviewed the plans for a risky attack. Mr. Obama did not act because the Pentagon wanted to launch the attack on a moonless night and the next one would come after his term had ended. With only 5 days in Office, President Trump was given the task; the raid caused several civilian casualties, with "a chain of mishaps and misjudgments" leading to a 50-minute shootout that led to the killing of one SEAL, the wounding of three other SEALs, and the deliberate destruction of a $75 million U.S. MV-22 Osprey aircraft that had been badly damaged on landing.[338] The U.S. government reported that 14 Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula fighters were killed and acknowledged that "civilian noncombatants likely were killed" as well.[339] Human Rights Watch, citing witness statements, reported the death of 14 civilians, including nine children.[340]
• From 1 to 8 March, the US conducted 45 airstrikes against AQAP, a record amount of airstrikes conducted against the group by the US in recent history. The airstrikes were reported to have killed hundreds of AQAP militants.[341][342]
• On 25 March a court in Houthi-controlled Sanaʽa sentenced Hadi and six other government officials to death in absentia for "high treason" in the form of "incitement and assistance to Saudi Arabia and its allies".[343][344] The sentence was announced by the Houthi-controlled Saba News Agency.[343]
• In May, ISIL's Wilayats in Yemen released their videos, claiming attacks upon both government, Houthi and AQAP targets. In one, they recorded their attack upon a Houthi target, then assassinating government troops and tribal members. Then posting their suicide attacks.
• On 22 July, Houthis and forces loyal to Ali Abdullah Saleh launched a retaliation missile (called Volcano H-2) on Saudi Arabia targeting the oil refineries in the Yanbu Province of Saudi Arabia. Houthis and Ali Saleh media have claimed that the missile hit its target causing a major fire, while Saudi Arabia has claimed that it was due to the extreme heat that caused one of the generators to blow up.[345]
• On 27 July, Houthis and forces loyal to Ali Abdullah Saleh launched approximately 4 Volcano 1 missiles at King Fahad Air Base, the Houthis and Saleh said that the missiles had successfully hit their targets, whereas Saudi Arabia said that it was able to shoot down the missiles claiming that the Houthis real goal was to hit Mecca.[346]
• CNN reported that on 1 October, a US MQ-9 Reaper drone was shot down north of Sanaa; the Houthi-controlled Defense Ministry said that it had "downed" the drone.[347] Also, sometime in late 2017, in a gradual escalation of U.S. military action, a group of U.S. Army commandos arrived to seek and destroy Houthi missiles near the Saudi Arabian border. In public statements, the U.S. government has tried to keep secret the extent of its involvement in the conflict since the Houthis pose no direct threat to America.[348]
• CNN reported that on 16 October, the US carried out its first airstrikes specifically targeting ISIS-YP; the strikes targeted two ISIS training camps in Al Bayda Governorate. A US Defense official told CNN that there were an estimated 50 fighters at the camps, the Pentagon said in a statement that the camps’ purpose was to "train militants to conduct terror attacks using AK-47s, machine guns, rocket-propelled grenade launchers and endurance training." strikes disrupted the organization's attempts to train new fighters; the strikes were carried out in cooperation with the government of Yemen.[349]
• On 2 December, Ali Abdullah Saleh formally split with the Houthis, calling for a dialogue with Saudi Arabia to end the civil war.[350] Clashes in Saana ensued.[351]
• On 4 December, Saleh was attacked and later killed by Houthi fighters while trying to flee Sanaa.[352] Shortly after his death, Saleh's son, Ahmed Saleh, called for Saleh's forces to split from the Houthis.[353]
• On 7 December, troops loyal to Hadi captured the strategic coastal town of Al-Khawkhah in western Yemen (115 km south of Al Hudaydah) from the Houthis. It was the first time in 3 years forces loyal to Hadi had entered the Al Hudaydah Governorate.[354]
• On 24 December, troops loyal to Hadi completely captured the cities of Beihan and Usaylan, officially ending Houthi presence in any major city that is a part of the Shabwah Governorate.[355]
• The Saudi-led coalition placed the number of enemy fighters killed at 11,000 as of December 2017.[111]

The southern separatists represented by the Southern Transitional Council were backing the Hadi government against the Houthis, but tensions erupted in January 2018 with the separatists accusing the government of corruption and discrimination. Gun battles erupted in Aden on 28 January 2018 after the deadline set by the separatists for Hadi to dismiss his cabinet elapsed. Pro-STC forces seized a number of government offices, including the Hadi government's headquarters.[356] By 30 January, the STC had taken control of most of the city.[357]

• On 3 March, fighting between Yemen's Houthi Ansarullah movement and Saudi-backed troops left over 55 people dead in the Nihm District in Yemen's north, with many more wounded; on the same day, fighting between the opposing groups killed at least 25 people along the western coast of Yemen.[358] Also in early March 2018, Houthi fighters killed 4 Saudi "sharpshooters" in retaliation for Saudi Arabia's numerous attacks on Yemen.[359]
• On 8 March, the Saudi-led coalition conducted airstrikes across Yemen that left 9 Yemeni civilians (including women and children) dead.[360] The following day, Houthi rebels launched an attack on a military site in Jizan.[361]
• On 26 March, the Houthis launched a barrage of rockets at Saudi Arabia, killing an Egyptian man and leaving two others wounded in Riyadh.[362]
• On 2 April, the Saudi-led coalition bombed a residential housing area in Al Hudaydah, killing at least 14 civilians and wounding 9.[363]
• On 7 April, according to pro-Houthi Shiite News, dozens of Sudanese troops were ambushed and killed by Houthis which led to calls for Sudan to stop fighting in the war in Yemen.[364]
• On 12 April, Saudi Arabia bombed the set of a TV series in western Yemen, killing 2 people.[364]
• On 19 April, another series of Saudi airstrikes killed at least 5 civilians and injured several others.[365] In response to Saudi Arabia's aggression against Yemen, Houthi forces hit a "mercenary camp" in Saudi Arabia with artillery and rocket fire (which killed and wounded some people at the mercenary camp), targeted a power plant in the Najran region of Saudi Arabia, and targeted an airport in Jizan.[366] Saudi Arabia later carried out a series of airstrikes in northwestern Sa'ada that destroyed three houses, as well as an aerial attack in southwestern Yemen that left 20 people dead.[367] The same day, 2 leaders of Al-Qaeda in Yemen were killed on Thursday after a security raid was carried out by Yemeni forces in the province of Abyan. The security sources said that the leaders of al-Qaeda in Yemen, Murad Abdullah Mohammed al-Doubli, nicknamed "Abu Hamza al-Batani" and Hassan Baasrei were killed after a raid by security forces in the Al-Qaeda stronghold. Also known as Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula or AQAP, Al-Qaeda is primarily active in Yemen. The U.S government believes AQAP to be the most dangerous of the al-Qaeda branches.[368]
• On 22 April, the Saudi-led coalition carried out airstrikes on a wedding in Hajjah, a town in northwestern Yemen; the airstrikes left at least 33 people dead and 41 wounded. The attack consisted of two missiles that hit several minutes apart.[369] Most of the people killed were women (including the bride at the wedding) and children. Ambulances were not able to get to the site of the attack at first, because, as jets were continuing to fly overhead after the attack, there were concerns about further airstrikes.[370]
• Houthi media outlets announced on 23 April that Saleh Ali al-Sammad had been killed in an airstrike by the Saudi-led coalition the previous week.[369] Additionally, an aerial attack by Saudi Arabia in Hajjah killed 18 people and wounded 13 others, while another airstrike by the Saudi-led coalition in Saada killed at least three people and wounded two others.[371] The same day, Yemen announced that it had fired two missiles at an oil facility in Jizan, a Saudi province near the Saudi-Yemeni border.[372]
• On 25 April, Houthi forces destroyed a tank of the Saudi-led coalition on the western coast of Yemen. It was also reported by Yemen's official news agency that 13 Saudi led troops had been killed or wounded in several parts of Yemen.[372] Later in April 2018, another series of Saudi airstrikes across a period of 24 hours killed at least eight civilians across Yemen, seven of whom were women and children. At least 10 other civilians were injured as a result of the airstrikes.[373]
• On 6 May, a Yemeni ballistic missile hit Saudi military positions in Asir. Two Saudi troops were also killed by Houthi snipers in the Haskul military base in Jizan. At around the same time, Saudi Arabia was bombing various parts of northern Yemen: a Saudi bombing in Sa'ada killed five members of a family, and Saudi air raids in Hudaydah left two civilians killed. Saudi Arabia also bombed Hajjah, which ended up being bombed 10 times over a 24-hour period.[374]
• On 7 May, airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition hit Yemen's presidency building. The attack left at least 6 people dead, all of whom were civilians. 30 people were also wounded in the airstrikes.[375]
• On 9 May, Houthi forces fired ballistic missiles at "economic targets" in Riyadh. According to Colonel Aziz Rashed, a military spokesman for the Houthi movement, the missile attack was revenge for Saudi Arabia's airstrikes in Yemen.[376]
• On 10 May, separate Saudi-led airstrikes on Yemeni residential areas killed two entire families. One of the airstrikes, which targeted a house in Sanaʽa, killed a father, mother, and two children from the same family, as well as two other civilians, in addition to wounding six people (including three children).[377] Also on 10 May, Houthi forces claimed to have destroyed 2 Abrams tanks belonging to the Saudi Army in Jizan.[378]
• On 11 May, it was reported that cluster bombs made by the United States were being used by Saudi Arabia on their airstrikes that were targeting civilians.[379] Also on 11 May, the United Nations Human Rights office reported that April had been the deadliest month to date in 2018 in Yemen, with 236 civilian deaths and 238 civilian injuries in April alone; this was an increase from the 180 civilian casualties in March of that year.[380]
• On 14 May, the Houthis fired a ballistic missile (that had been domestically manufactured) at a Saudi Aramco oil facility in Jizan. Pro-Houthi forces also shot down a Saudi reconnaissance drone in Jizan (in southwestern Saudi Arabia).[381]
• On 17 May, Houthi forces fired another ballistic missile at a military base in Lahij, in southwestern Yemen, that was run by Saudi soldiers.[382] Also on 17 May, Amnesty International said that heavy fighting near Al Hudaydah has displaced tens of thousands of people. It also warned that "the worst could be yet to come," as Saudi-backed militants were advancing towards the Houthi-controlled area. Amnesty International also said that clashes along the western coast of Yemen had displaced around 100,000 people in recent months, with most people from Al Hudaydah Governorate. It added that it was "a glimpse of what potentially lies in store on a wider scale if the fighting encroaches on the densely populated port city."[383]
• On 18 May, another Houthi missile was fired into Jizan, in southwestern Saudi Arabia. The missile was reported to have struck Jazan Economic City. Also on 18 May, over a dozen Saudi soldiers were killed and injured by Houthi snipers and their allies.[384]
• On 21 May, Houthi forces fired a ballistic missile targeting Jizan Airport.[385] Also on 21 May, the Saudi-led coalition launched 11 airstrikes on the Kitaf district of Saada, in northern Yemen. Saudi rockets and artillery shells also hit several border areas, which inflicted heavy casualties on houses and farms of citizens.[386] Further, on the night of 21 May, clashes were reported to have started between forces of the UAE and Qatar in the Taiz province of Yemen.[387]
• On 22 May, 10 Saudi soldiers and five Saudi commanders were allegedly killed in an attempt to restore a series of mountains in Jizan.[388]
• On 25 May, Yemeni forces fired a ballistic missile at a Saudi military camp in Najran.[389] It was also reported on 25 May that airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition killed 7 civilians, in addition to injuring some other civilians, in the Taiz and Saada provinces of Yemen.[390]
• On 26 May, Houthi forces announced that military drones had bombarded a Saudi airport in Asir for the second time in over a month. The attack led to the suspension of flights to and from the airport. Also on 26 May, a Saudi bulldozer near the Alab border crossing was destroyed by Houthi artillery fire.[391] Further, also on that day, eight airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition hit Al Hudaydah Governorate, while another airstrike by the Saudi-led coalition on a gas station in Sanaʽa killed at least four people and wounded at least 10 others.[392] Also towards the end of May 2018, dozens of pro-Hadi troops were killed and injured along Yemen's western coast.[393]
• On 28 May, a Saudi commander was killed in Jizan, and a military vehicle with troops in Najran was destroyed.[394]
• In late May 2018, pro-Hadi troops prepared to launch a siege on Hudaydah. Colonel Sadiq Duwaid of the pro-Hadi forces stated, "First, we will cut off supply lines, especially between [the capital] Sanaʽa and Hudaydah, then we will place the Houthis under siege." The spokesperson of the United Nations Secretary-General warned that "increased fighting would unleash even more internally displaced people," and Amnesty International warned that fighting near the port of Hudaydah had already displaced tens of thousands of people. It also warned against clashes spreading to urban areas.[395]
• On 1 June, Houthi forces shot down a Saudi helicopter gunship of the Saudi army in an attack that killed all those on board.[396] Also on 1 June, the spokesman for the pro-Houthi forces warned the United Arab Emirates that Abu Dhabi was no longer safe from retaliatory missiles.[397]
• On 4 June, the leader of the Houthi movement claimed that Israeli warplanes had been detected flying over Hudaydah.[398][399] On the same day, Yemen's Red Sea Ports Corporation said that a vessel used by the United Nation's World Food Programme was attacked after it delivered a shipment in Hudaydah, which is under a blockade by the Saudi-led coalition. Mark Lowcock, the United Nations OCHA aid chief, said that no one was injured, but criticized anyone who was attempting to disrupt aid delivery in Hudaydah. The suspect was not known at the time.[400]
• On 8 and 9 June, heavy fighting began in al-Durayhmi and Bayt al-Faqih, 10 and 35 kilometers from the port city of al-Hudaydah, respectively. The United Nations warned that a military attack or a siege on the city could cost up to 250,000 lives.[401]
• On 10 June, it was reported that the United Nations had withdrawn from Hudaydah.[402] Also on 10 June, it was reported that so far, 600 people had died in recent days as the battle intensified.[403] Furthermore, also on 10 June, Al Jazeera published an article containing reports of alleged torture in Houthi prisons in Yemen.[404]
• On 12 June, it was reported that an airstrike by the Saudi-led coalition hit a Doctors Without Borders building. This was despite markings on the roof of the building identifying it as a building of health care and despite the fact that its coordinates had been shared with the coalition. No one was hurt in the attack, but the newly constructed building suffered significant damage.[405]
• On 4 July, a United Nations report stated that over 121,000 Yemenis had fled Hudaydah due to the attack on the port city by the Saudi-led coalition.[406]
• On 6 July, Houthi forces fired a domestic ballistic missile at a "strategic economic target" in Jizan in southwestern Saudi Arabia.[407]
• On 9 August, a Saudi airstrike on a school bus in a crowded market in Dahyan killed 40 young school children and 11 adults. The 227 kg (500 lb) laser-guided Mk 82 bomb used in the attack was made by Lockheed Martin and purchased by Saudi Arabia from the US.[408]
• On 13 December, a truce was called in Hudaydah, a port city in Yemen.[409] Warring parties agreed to have a ceasefire in the crucial place, which is a lifeline for half the country. The Houthis agreed to have all forces withdraw from Hudaydah in the following days, same as those from the Yemeni government alliance who were fighting them there, both being replaced by United Nations-designated "local troops".

Ongoing armed conflicts in 2019

---

  Major wars, 10,000 or more deaths in current or past year

• On 8 January, the Council on Foreign Relations listed this conflict as a conflict to watch during 2019.[410] Similarly, the Italian Institute for International Political Studies also claimed it to be a conflict to watch in 2019.[411]
• Sporadic exchanges of fire and other ceasefire violations were reported between Houthi forces and coalition troops around Hudaydah in January.[412]
• An explosion in a warehouse on 7 April in Sanaa killed at least 11 civilians, including school children and left more than 39 people wounded. The Associated Press news agency said 13 were killed, including 7 children, and more than 100 were wounded. According to Al Jazeera and Houthi officials, the civilians were killed in a Saudi-led coalition airstrike.[413] The Saudi-led coalition denied any airstrikes took place that day on Sanaa. The state-run news agency in Aden, aligned with the internationally recognized government, said the rebels had stored weapons at the warehouse. According to The Washington Post, "some families and residents of the district of Sawan said the explosion occurred after a fire erupted inside the warehouse. They said a fire sent columns of white smoke rising into the air, followed by the explosion." Their accounts were confirmed by several videos filmed by bystanders.[414][415]
• On 23 June, Houthi rebels carried out a drone attack on Abha International Airport, killing a Syrian national and wounding 21.[416]
• On 25 June, Saudi special forces announced that they captured the leader of the ISIL-YP, Abu Osama al-Muhajer, on 3 June along with other members including the chief financial officer of the organization.[93]
• In June, the United Arab Emirates began scaling back its military presence in Yemen, amidst the soaring US-Iran tensions closer to home. According to four western diplomats, the key member of the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen, UAE pulled out troops from the southern port of Aden and its western coast. One of the sources stated that “a lot” of forces have been withdrawn in three weeks.[417]
• In July, the United Arab Emirates announced the partial withdrawal of its troops from Yemen, amid tensions with Iran on the Persian Gulf.[418]
• On 12 August, fighters aligned with the Southern Transitional Council took control of Aden from the Saudi-backed government.[419]
• On 26 August, Houthi rebels fired a total of 10 Badr-1 ballistic missiles at the Jizan airport in southwest Saudi Arabia. The retaliatory attack led to dozens of killings and injuries. Riyadh claimed that it had intercepted six out of 10 missiles fired from Yemen.[420] Houthi fighters ambushed a Saudi Arabian auxiliary force of around 1,100 men from the al-Fateh Brigade in the Jabara Valley in Saada Governorate as part of Operation Victory from God.[421]
• On 29 August, the Yemeni government alleged that the United Arab Emirates conducted airstrikes over the forces heading to the southern port city of Aden to fight the UAE-backed separatists. A Yemeni commander, Col. Mohamed al-Oban stated that the airstrikes killed at least 30 troops.[422]
• On 30 August, Islamic State took responsibility for a suicide bomb attack in the Yemeni port of Aden, which was carried out by a militant on a motorcycle. The attack reportedly killed six southern separatist fighters.[423]
• On 1 September, the Saudi-led coalition fighting Houthi rebels in Yemen launched several airstrikes on a university being used as a detention center in a southwestern province. Initially, 60 fatalities were reported. However, officials and rebels later confirmed that at least 70 people died in the airstrikes in Dhamar, making it the deadliest attack of the year by the coalition.[424]
• On 8 September, the Arab coalition including Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates urged separatists and President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi's government to halt all military actions in south Yemen. The two Gulf nations asked them to prepare for “constructive dialogue” to end the crisis between the two nominal allies.[425]
• On 14 September, the Houthi rebels claimed the Abqaiq and Khurais drone attacks, which caused massive damage to Saudi oil facilities.[426]
• On 24 September, 16 people including seven children were killed by a Saudi attack in Dhalea province.[427]
• In September 2019, Saudi Arabia agreed to a cease-fire in several areas of Yemen, including the capital of Sana’a which is controlled by Iranian-backed Houthi rebels. This was part of broader efforts to end a four-year conflict that has threatened to escalate into regional war.[428] The UN Special Envoy for Yemen believed this ceasefire was a positive sign in the progression of the peace process started with the Stockholm agreement.[429] This was followed by an agreement to share power between the Southern Transition Council (STC) and the Republic of Yemen Government (ROYG) in October, further advancing the effort to broker a lasting peace.[430]
• On 29 October, Yemeni officials reported that a large explosion hit the convoy of the internationally recognized government's defense minister. Mohammed Al-Maqdishi was inside a complex of buildings used as the ministry's interim headquarters in Marib province. However, he survived the attack.[431]
• On 13 November, Oman became the mediator between Saudi Arabia and the Houthi rebels. The country between the two conflicting nations held indirect, behind-the-scenes talks to end the ongoing war of five years in Yemen.[432]
• On 29 December 2019, a missile-attack by Houthis in Yemen struck a military parade in southern separatist-controlled town of al-Dhalea, which killed at least five people and wounded others, Yemen's Security Belt forces said.[433] On the same day, the Houthi rebels listed locations on their strike targets, which included six “sensitive” sites in Saudi Arabia and three in the United Arab Emirates.[434]

On 27 September, Kuwait reiterated its willingness to host the parties involved in the Yemen war for another round of peace talks, in order to seek a political solution to the prolonged crisis.[435] Kuwait had also hosted the Yemen peace talks for three months in April 2016. However, the negotiations broke down in August, after they failed to yield a deal between the parties involved in the war.[436]

On 5 November, a power-sharing deal, Riyadh Agreement on Yemen was signed between the Saudi-backed Yemeni government and the UAE-backed southern separatists, in the presence of Mohammed bin Salman, Mohammed bin Zayed, Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, Southern Transitional Council's chief Aidarus al-Zoubaidi and other senior officials. It was signed in Saudi Arabia and was hailed as a wider political solution to end the multifaceted conflict in Yemen.[437] Despite the agreement, clashes between the STC and Hadi government forces took place in December.[438]

• On 7 January, Houthi rebels shot down a drone belonging to the Saudi-led coalition, in the northeastern province of Jawf.[439][440]
• On 18 January, a missile attack on a military training camp in the central province of Ma'rib killed at least 111 soldiers, while dozens were wounded. The Yemeni government blamed Houthi rebels for the attack, as there was no claim of responsibility.[441] The strike targeted a mosque as people met for prayer, military sources told Reuters.[442][443]
• On 29 January, Houthi rebels said they carried out missile and drones attacks on Saudi Aramco in the kingdom's southern Jazan province. However, Saudi oil authorities claimed that the missiles were intercepted.[444] Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula leader Qasim al-Raymi was killed by an American drone strike.[445]
• On 31 January, Houthi armed forces spokesman Gen. Yahya Sarea announced that Houthi forces managed to liberate roughly 2,500 km² of territory including the city of Naham, and parts of the governorates of Al-Jawf and Marib, from Saudi-led forces. They recaptured the entire Sana'a Governorate.[446][270] The coalition forces immediately denied this claim, claiming victory and progress in these areas.“In the Nahm district, east of the capital Sanaa, the National Army managed to regain control of a number of Houthi-controlled areas,” Majli said.[447]

• On 15 February, a Saudi fighter jet crashed in Yemen and the Houthi rebels claimed responsibility for the attack. The next day, the Saudi-led coalition launched airstrikes, targeting Yemen's northern Al-Jawf province and killed 31 civilians.[448]

• On 1 March, Houthi forces captured the city of Al Hazm, the capital of Al-Jawf province. [449][450]
• On 10 March, Houthis forces captured the town of Tabab Al-Bara and other portions of Sirwah District in Ma'rib Governorate in their eastward offensive towards the city of Ma'rib.[451][452]
• On 30 March, the Saudi-led coalition carried out an airstrike on the Yemeni capital, Sanaa.[453] The attacks came despite the UN Secretary-General António Guterres and other organizations asking to maintain ceasefire during the COVID-19 pandemic. In their statement, a group of regional experts also said that all political prisoners should be released from prisons to tackle with the appalling health care system, and mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic from spreading in Yemen.[454]

• On 5 April, at least 5 women were killed and 28 people injured when shelling hit the woman's section of Taiz's main prison. The shelling came from the part of the divided city controlled by the Houthis.[455] The attack was condemned by the High Commissioner of the United Nations High Commissioner for Human Rights (UNHCHR) Michelle Bachelet, who called it a breach of international humanitarian law.[456][457]
• After the United Nations urged both sides to pursue peace talks in order to respond to the COVID-19 pandemic in Yemen,[458] the Saudi-led coalition called a unilateral ceasefire beginning 9 April at noon, to support efforts to mitigate the COVID-19 pandemic.[459]
• However, despite pledging ceasefire in Yemen, Saudi-led coalition carried out dozens of airstrikes in the span of a week. The Yemen Data Project stated that at least 106 Saudi-led airstrikes, across 26 raids in Yemen have been carried out by the Kingdom over the last week.[460]
• On 26 April, the Southern Transitional Council (STC) announced it was establishing self-rule in the parts of south Yemen under their control. The move threatened to renew the conflict with the Saudi-backed Internationally Recognized Government (IRG) of President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi.[461]
• By 28 April, Houthi forces said that they managed to capture eleven of the twelve districts and 95% of the Al-Jawf province with only the eastern district of Khab and al-Shaaf still being in Saudi-led coalition control. They controlled all of North Yemen except for Marib Governorate.[1][2]

• On 11 May, the Hadi government forces attacked the separatists positions in the capital of Abyan province, Zinjibar. An STC official, Nabil al-Hanachi stated that they managed to "stop the attack and kill many of them". The renewed fight between the two sides brought additional risks to the already vague Riyadh Agreement.[462]
• On 19 May, the President of STC Aidarus al-Zoubaidi visited Riyadh for two days, in order to discuss the prolonged impasse with the Hadi government. However, the talks were extended to the eighth day on 26 May, where the Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman was facing a challenge to resolve the conflict between the separatists it sponsors and the Hadi government backed by the UAE. The conflict between the two sides reflected rising differences within the Saudi-led coalition, giving rise to a “war within a war” that the two are fighting against the Houthi rebels.[463]

• On June 15, an airstrike from Saudi-led coalition on a vehicle carrying civilians killed 13, including four children.[464]
• On June 21, the STC seized full control of Socotra, deposing governor Ramzi Mahroos, who denounced the action as a coup.[465]

Destroyed house in the south of Sanaa, 13 June 2015

According to Farea Al-Muslim, direct war crimes have been committed during the conflict; for example, an IDP camp was hit by a Saudi airstrike, while Houthis have sometimes prevented aid workers from giving aid.[485] The UN and several major human rights groups discussed the possibility that war crimes may have been committed by Saudi Arabia during the air campaign.[486]

Human Rights Watch (HRW) wrote that the Saudi-led air campaign that began on 26 March 2015, had "conducted airstrikes in apparent violation of the laws of war, such as the March 30 attack on a displaced persons camp in Mazraq, northern Yemen, that struck a medical facility and a market". HRW also said that the Houthis had "unlawfully deployed forces in densely populated areas and used excessive force against peaceful protesters and journalists". In addition, HRW said that by providing logistical and intelligence assistance to coalition forces, "the United States may have become a party to the conflict, creating obligations under the laws of war".[487] Other incidents noted by HRW that had been deemed as "indiscriminate or disproportionate" or "in violation of the laws of war" were: a strike on a dairy factory outside the Red Sea port of Hodaida (31 civilian deaths);[488] a strike that destroyed a humanitarian aid warehouse of the international aid organization Oxfam in Saada;[489] the Saudi Arabia-led coalition's blockade of Yemen which kept out fuel desperately needed for the Yemeni population's survival.[490]

Amnesty International said that several Saudi Arabian-led airstrikes, documented by it, hit five densely populated areas (Sa'dah, Sanaʽa, Hodeidah, Hajjah and Ibb), and "raise concerns about compliance with the rules of international humanitarian law".[491][492] Amnesty International added, that according to its research, at least 139 people, including at least 97 civilians (33 of whom were children) were killed during these strikes, and 460 individuals were injured (at least 157 whom were civilians).[491] HRW also said that pro-Houthi fighters may have committed war crimes when two women were killed in Yemen and aid workers were arrested for two weeks.[493]

U.N. Humanitarian Coordinator for Yemen, Johannes van der Klaauw, said that air strikes by the Saudi-led coalition on Sa'ada city in Yemen, where many civilians were trapped, were in breach of international humanitarian law, despite calls for civilians to leave the area. Scores of civilians were reportedly killed and thousands forced to flee their homes after the Saudi-led coalition declared the entire governorate a military target, he said.[494][495] Van der Klaauw also said that coalition strikes had targeted schools and hospitals, in breach of international law,[496]

Yemeni capital Sanaa after airstrikes, 9 October 2015

A group of 17 aid agencies working in Yemen condemned the growing intensity of airstrikes in the north of Yemen on 8 and 9 May 2015. Save the Children's Country Director in Yemen, Edward Santiago, said that the "indiscriminate attacks after the dropping of leaflets urging civilians to leave Sa'ada raises concerns about the possible pattern being established in breach of International Humanitarian Law".[497] Euro-Mediterranean Human Rights Monitor has claimed that Houthi militias in alliance with the militants of exiled former president Ali Abdullah Saleh killed purposely at least 22 civilians in Taiz. According to eyewitnesses, the militants launched Katyusha rockets targeting the markets and residential neighborhoods in the center of Taiz. As a result, many civilians were killed and wounded. On the other hand, local media belonging to Houthi militias have denied such accusation, accusing Saudi and ISIL for committing these attacks.[498]

In December 2015, HRW claimed that six "unlawful airstrikes" were carried out in the capital by the Saudi-led coalition in September and October, which killed 60 civilians. They also criticized the United States, a party to the conflict, for refusing to investigate the attacks.[499] In January 2016, local sources in the Yemeni capital of Sanaʽa reported that a Saudi-led coalition airstrike targeted the Noor Center for the Blind.[500] On 8 October 2016, a Saudi-led airstrike on a funeral ceremony that killed roughly 100 people and injured 500, including children. HRW is calling the attack an apparent war crime.[501]

In November 2017, U.S. Senator Chris Murphy accused the United States of complicity in war crimes and the humanitarian crisis on the Senate floor, stating "there is a humanitarian catastrophe inside this country – that very few people in this nation can locate on a map – of absolutely epic proportion. This humanitarian catastrophe – this famine … is caused, in part, by the actions of the United States of America."[502] In August 2018 the headline of article on Foreign Policy magazine was "America in committing war crimes in Yemen and it doesn't even know why."[503] British researcher Alex de Waal has found that the "responsibility for Yemen goes beyond Riyadh and Abu Dhabi to London and Washington. 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 authorized arms sales to the Saudis worth $110 billion last May. Yemen will be the defining famine crime of this generation, perhaps this century."[504] In July 2017, and after a challenge mounted by human rights campaigners against ministers who the campaigners accused of "acting illegally by not suspending weapons sales to Saudi Arabia, the UK High Court ruled that the government arms sales were lawful."[505]

On 28 August 2018, at a Pentagon news conference in Washington, US Defense Secretary Jim Mattis said that the US would continue to support the Saudi-led coalition. In spite of a commitment by Saudi that "everything humanly possible" would be done and no damage to innocent lives would be caused, the increased civilian casualties in Yemen war remain unexplained.[506] UN's first report after the coalition claims this to be the world's worst humanitarian crisis, where more than 10,000 have been killed. The report also claims that the governments of Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates and Yemen, may be responsible for war crimes, such as rape, torture and use of child soldiers.[507]

In July 2019, a large shipment of Australian-built remote weapons systems were exported from Sydney airport. The Guardian reported that the shipment was purchased by the governments of Saudi Arabia and United Arab Emirates.[508] In August 2019, human rights groups urged Australia to suspend the arms sales to the two countries that have been “waging the bloody war in Yemen”. The United Nations confirmed deaths and injuries of 17,700 civilians, in addition to the increasing humanitarian crisis and displacements.[509]

On August 3, 2019, the United Nations investigators said the US, UK and France may potentially be complicit in committing war crimes in Yemen by selling weapons to the Saudi-led coalition which is deliberately using starvation against the civilian population as a tactic of warfare.[510][511]

On October 7, 2019, Yemeni health officials said an explosive device blasted in Wadi Nakhla, Hudaydah, killing at least four children, and wounding two others. The officials blamed Houthi rebels for the blast.[512]

In February 2019, an exclusive investigation led by CNN reported the violation of the US arms agreement with the UAE and Saudi Arabia. According to the report, Saudi Arabia and its coalition partners, including UAE, transferred US-made weapons to fighters associated to extremist and terrorist groups like al Qaeda, Salafi militias, and other extremist factions fighting in Yemen, violating Saudi-led coalition's agreement with the United States.[513]

In November 2019, US State Department and Pentagon assigned teams to visit the United Arab Emirates and Saudi Arabia to probe into CNN's conclusion claiming that American-made weapons are being transferred for use by the separatist militias and rebel fighters in Yemen.[514]

In February 2020, British law firm, Stoke White appealed the authorities in Britain, the U.S. and Turkey to arrest senior officials from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) for allegedly carrying out acts of war crimes and torture in Yemen. The complaints were lodged under the provision of ‘universal jurisdiction’, wherein the nations must probe breaches of the Geneva Convention for possible war crimes.[515]

In March 2020, the Saudi military forces fighting insurgents and Houthi rebel groups in the Yemeni civil war, was accused of carrying out abuse of Yemeni civilians in the country's remote eastern province, al-Mahrah. The Saudi-backed Yemeni forces and Saudi's own military forces have been accused by the Human Rights Watch of carrying out serious abuse of human rights in the proxy war ongoing since the 2015, by arbitrarily arresting, torturing, and illegally transferring detainees to the kingdom of Saudi Arabia.[516][517]

On 21 June 2020, The Guardian reported that after a strong campaign against arms trade in the UK in 2019, a court of appeal listed supply of arms to Saudi Arabia as unlawful. However, the UK government allegedly continued the arms supply to Saudi Arabia and ignored the landmark ruling that declared it unlawful.[518]

Djibouti, a small country in the Horn of Africa across the Bab-el-Mandeb strait from Yemen, has received an influx of refugees since the start of the campaign.[235][519][520] Refugees also fled from Yemen to Somalia, arriving by sea in Somaliland and Puntland starting 28 March.[521][522] On 16 April 2015, 2,695 refugees of 48 nationalities were reported to have fled to Oman in the past two weeks.[523]

According to Asyam Hafizh, an Indonesian student who was studying in Yemen, Al-Qaeda of Yemen has rescued at least 89 Indonesian civilians which trapped in the conflict. Later on he arrived in Indonesia and he told his story to local Media.[524] United Nations High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) reported in August 2015 that a total of almost 100,000 people fled Yemen, especially to regional countries, like Saudi Arabia and Djibouti.[525] In September 2016, UNHCR estimated displacement of 2.4 million Yemenis within the country and 120,000 seeking asylum.[526]

According to the International Organisation for Migration, despite the dangerous situation, nearly 150,000 migrants from Ethiopia arrived in Yemen in 2018, most of whom were on their way to Saudi Arabia in search of employment.[527]

In October 2019, Kuwait donated $12 million to the UNHCR to support its humanitarian programs in Yemen. Salvatore Lombardo, Chief of Staff at office of the UNHCR, said that the donation will be allocated to address the issues of Yemen's internally displaced persons (IDPs).[528]

Registration of Indian citizens evacuating from Yemen in March 2015

The Royal Saudi Navy evacuated diplomats and United Nations staff from Aden to Jeddah on 28 March 2015.[529]

Pakistan dispatched two special PIA flights to evacuate some 500 stranded Pakistanis on 29 March 2015.[530] Several UN staff members and Arab diplomats were also evacuated following the airstrikes.[531]

The Indian government responded by deploying ships and planes to Yemen to evacuate stranded Indians. India began evacuating its citizens on 2 April by sea.[532] An air evacuation of Indian nationals from Sanaʽa to Djibouti started on 3 April, after the Indian government obtained permission to land two Airbus A320s at the airport.[533] The Indian Armed Forces carried out rescue operation codenamed Operation Raahat and evacuated more than 4640 overseas Indians in Yemen along with 960 foreign nationals of 41 countries.[534] The air evacuation ended on 9 April 2015 while the evacuation by sea ended on 11 April 2015.[535] The United States did not undertake an evacuation of private U.S. citizens from the country,[536] but some Americans (as well as Europeans) took part in an evacuation organized by the Indian government.[537]

A Chinese missile frigate docked in Aden on 29 March to evacuate Chinese nationals from Yemen.[538] The ship reportedly deployed soldiers ashore on 2 April to guard the evacuation of civilians from the city.[539] Hundreds of Chinese and other foreign nationals were safely evacuated aboard the frigate in the first operation of its kind carried out by the Chinese military.[540] The Philippines announced that 240 Filipinos were evacuated across the Saudi border to Jizan, before boarding flights to Riyadh and then to Manila.[541]

The Malaysian government deployed two Royal Malaysian Air Force C-130 aircraft to evacuate their citizens.[542] On 15 April, around 600 people were evacuated by Malaysia, also comprising citizens of other Southeast Asian countries such as 85 Indonesians, 9 Cambodians, 3 Thais and 2 Vietnamese.[543] The Indonesian Air Force also sent a Boeing 737-400 and a chartered aircraft to evacuate Indonesian citizens.[544]

The Ethiopian Foreign Ministry said it would airlift its citizens out of Yemen if they requested to be evacuated.[545] There were reportedly more than 50,000 Ethiopian nationals living and working in Yemen at the outbreak of hostilities.[546] More than 3,000 Ethiopians registered to evacuate from Yemen, and as of 17 April, the Ethiopian Foreign Ministry had confirmed 200 evacuees to date.[547]

Throughout April, Russian military forces evacuated more than 1,000 people of various nationalities, including Russian citizens, to the Chkalovsky Airport, a military air base.[548]

Code Pink anti-war activists protest U.S. Senators supporting Saudi-U.S. arms deals, December 2017

Yemeni refugee women and children are extremely susceptible to smuggling and human trafficking.[549] NGOs report that vulnerable populations in Yemen were at increased risk for human trafficking in 2015 because of ongoing armed conflict, civil unrest, and lawlessness. Migrant workers from the Somalia who remained in Yemen during this period suffered from increased violence, and women and children became most vulnerable to human trafficking. Prostitution on women and child sex workers is a social issue in Yemen. Citizens of other gulf states are beginning to be drawn into the sex tourism industry. The poorest people in Yemen work locally and children are commonly sold as sex slaves abroad. While this issue is worsening, the plight of Somali's in Yemen has been ignored by the government.[550]

Children are recruited between the ages of 13 and 17, and as young as 10 years old into armed forces despite a law against it in 1991. The rate of militant recruitment in Yemen increases exponentially. According to an international organization, between 26 March and 24 April 2015, armed groups recruited at least 140 children.[551] According to the New York Times report, 1.8 million children in Yemen are extremely subject to malnutrition in 2018.[552]

Both the Saudi-led coalition and the Houthis were blacklisted by the UN over the deaths of children during the war. In 2016 Saudi Arabia was removed from the list after alleged pressure from Gulf countries who threatened to withdraw hundreds of millions of dollars in assistance to the UN, the decision was criticized by human rights groups and the coalition added again in 2017 and was accused of killing or injuring 683 children, and attacking many of schools and hospitals in 38 confirmed attacks, while the Houthis were accused of being responsible for 414 child casualties in 2016.[553][554][555]

In mid-May 2019, a series of Saudi/Emirati-led airstrikes hit Houthi targets on the outskirts of Sana’a. One of the airstrikes destroyed several homes, killing five civilians and injuring more than 30. According to the Armed Conflict Location and Event Data Project, while 4,800 of about 7,000 civilian fatalities have been caused by the Saudi-led coalition since 2016, the Houthis are accountable for 1,300 civilian deaths.[556]

According to UNICEF, two million children have dropped out of school in Yemen since the conflict began in March 2015. The education of other 3.7 million children is uncertain as the teachers have not received salaries in the last two years.[557]

On October 9, 2019, children's advocacy group, Save the Children warned of a significant rise in cholera cases in northern Yemen. The crisis caused by increase in fuel shortages has affected several thousand children and their families.[558]

Between October 2016 and August 2019, over 2,036,960 suspected cholera cases were reported in Yemen, including 3,716 related deaths (fatality rate of 0.18%).[559]

The seasonal flu virus in Yemen has claimed more than 270 lives since October 2019. Poor medical facilities and widespread poverty in Yemen due to the war waged by Saudi-led coalition and Houthis have led to the deaths of many infected patients in their homes.[560]

On June 15, 2020, the Saudi-led coalition killed 13 civilians including four children. An airstrike struck a vehicle carrying civilians in Saada, Yemen.[561]

On June 16, 2020, the United Nations removed the Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen war from an annual blacklist of parties violating children’s rights. The decision was taken despite the UN finding that the coalition operations killed or injured nearly 222 children in Yemen, in 2019. The Saudi-led coalition’s removal from the blacklist leaves Yemeni children vulnerable to future attacks.[562]

The civil war in Yemen severely impacted and degraded the country's education system. The number of children who are out of school increased to 1.8 million in 2015–2016 out of more than 5 million registered students, according to the 2013 statistics released by the Ministry of Education.[563] Moreover, 3600 schools are directly affected; 68 schools are occupied by armed groups, 248 schools have severe structural damage, and 270 are used to house refugees. The Yemen government has not been able to improve this situation due to limited authority and manpower.

Some of the education system's problems include: not enough financial resources to operate schools and salaries of the teachers, not enough materials to reconstruct damaged schools, and lack of machinery to print textbooks and provide school supplies. These are caused by the unstable government that cannot offer enough financial support since many schools are either damaged or used for other purposes.

Due to warfare and destruction of schools, the education ministry, fortunately, was able to send teams to oversee primary and secondary schools' final exam in order to give students 15–16 school year certificates.[563] Currently, UNICEF is raising money to support students and fix schools damaged by armed conflicts.

The Yemeni quality of life is affected by the civil war and people have suffered enormous hardships. Although mines are banned by the government, Houthi forces placed anti-personnel mines in many parts of Yemen including Aden.[564] Thousands of civilians are injured when they accidentally step on mines; many lose their legs and injure their eyes. It is estimated that more than 500,000 mines have been laid by Houthi forces during the conflict. The pro-Hadi Yemen Army was able to remove 300,000 Houthi mines in recently captured areas, including 40,000 mines on the outskirts of Marib province, according to official sources.[565]

In addition, the nine-country coalition led by Saudi Arabia launched many airstrikes against Houthi forces; between March 2015 and December 2018 more than 4600 civilians have been killed and much of the civilian infrastructure for goods and food production, storage, and distribution has been destroyed.[566][567] Factories have ceased production and thousands of people have lost their jobs. Due to decreased production, food, medicines, and other consumer staples have become scarce. The prices of these goods have gone up and civilians can no longer afford them for sustenance.

Yemen is facing one of the world's worst Water, Sanitation and Hygiene (WASH) outbreak. The lack of governance has left Yemen without a viable water supply. Poor sanitation and the lack of clean water has had a deteriorating effect on the health of Yemenis, which is apparent through the increasing cases of cholera in Yemen since 2015. The entire country has been affected by a water shortage and the price of drinking water has more than doubled. Drinking water has become unaffordable for most Yemenis. The problem in Yemen is widespread, thus making it difficult to reduce the problem from escalating because it is hard to supply everyone on a regular basis.

The Regional Director for the Middle East and North Africa at UNICEF, Geert Cappelaere, has explained that the fuel shortages in Yemen have deepened the water and health crisis. The water pumping stations in Yemen have been jeopardized as they are quickly running out of fuel and over 3 million people are dependent on these water pumps which have been established through public networks. The ICRC has been working closely with vulnerable people where the resources are limited but aim to prevent the water crisis from worsening by buying 750,000 liters of diesel to provide clean water for people living in Yemen. Already a scarce commodity, the amount of water withdrawn from wells in 2016 reached unsustainable levels. The ICRC has also been working carefully with local authorities to provide water to 330,000 people in Aden. They have also installed wells nearby Aden to provide water to the neighborhood when they are experiencing shortages of water.

Water resources have been used by both sides during the war as a tactic during the conflict. Unlike other countries in the Middle East, Yemen has no rivers to depend on for water resources. In 2017, 250,¬000 people of Taiz's total population of 654,330 were served by public water supply networks. As a result of the ongoing conflict NGO's have struggled to reach the sanitation facilities due to security issues. Since the aerial bombardment, Taiz has been left in a critical situation as the current water production is not sufficient for the population.

Water availability in Yemen has decreased.[610] Water scarcity with an intrinsic geographical formation in highlands and limited capital to build water infrastructures and provision service caused a catastrophic water shortage in Yemen. Aquifer recharge rates are decreasing while salt water intrusion is increasing.[611] After the civil war began in 2015, the water buckets were destroyed significantly and price of water highly increased. Storing water capacity has been demolished by war and supply chains have been occupied by military personnel, which makes the delivery of water far more difficult. In 2015, over 15 million people need healthcare and over 20 million need clean water and sanitation—an increase of 52 percent since the intervention, but the government agencies can not afford to deliver clean water to displaced Yemeni citizens.[612]

The Yemen civil war resulted in a severe lack of food and vegetation. Agricultural production in the country has suffered substantially leaving Yemen to face the threat of famine. Yemen is currently under blockade by land, sea, and air which has disrupted the delivery of many of the country's resources. In a country where 90% of the food requirements are met through imports, this blockade has had serious consequences concerning the availability of food to its citizens.[613] It is reported that out of the population of 24 million in Yemen, everyday 13 million are going hungry and 6 million are at risk of starvation.[613] According to reports there is strong evidence suggesting that Yemen's already limited agricultural sector is being deliberately destroyed by warring factions, exacerbating the food shortage and leaving the country dependent solely on imports to meet the food requirements of its citizens.[614]