3/22/2024 – Yemen is facing one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises as the war there enters its ninth year. Yemen’s civil war erupted in 2014 when Houthi Shiite rebels, historically opposed to the Sunni-led government, seized control of Sanaa, Yemen’s capital and largest city. In response, in March 2015, a coalition led by Saudi Arabia and supported by the United States launched a military intervention aiming to defeat the Houthis and reinstate President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. The conflict’s chaos enabled the rise of various factions, including al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the Southern Transitional Council backed by the UAE, among others, further complicating the situation.
One result of this conflict has been a massive crisis in education for young people in Yemen. A recent press release from our friends at Mwatana for Human Rights are reported that the country’s education system is in a dire condition:
“The multiple violations against education and educational institutions have dealt severe blows to the future of Yemenis,” they write, “impacting not only their present rights and lives but also becoming a prominent aspect of the conflict in Yemen, as it struggled against illiteracy… Warring parties must spare educational institutions from conflict. Militants continuing to utilize schools should relinquish them, allowing their children to receive education and securing a brighter future for the next generation.”
Read the full press release here.
Follow Mwatana for more coverage on Yemen here.
Learn about how the Cultures of Resistance Network has supported Mwatana here.
Cover image courtesy of UNICEF
