Ten years after the air strikes began, Yemenis hope for an end to 'journey of suffering'

Taiz, Yemen - The war in Yemen has been at a truce-like standstill for the past few years, but the impact of a decade of conflict is felt acutely by millions these days - perhaps more so than at the peak of the fighting. 

The Yemeni economy has been battered by the war, which has left more than half of the population - or 19.5 million people - in need of humanitarian aid, including many who are unemployed and displaced from their homes.

Many are also contending with the loss of loved ones who have died in fighting or struggling to access basic services like food and water. 

With the anniversary of the Saudi-led coalition's intervention in Yemen this month, Middle East Eye spoke to Yemenis across the country about how they have carried on in the face of loss and what they hope for 10 years on.

Mansour, a 17-year-old from Taiz, lost his older brother Abdullah eight years ago when he was killed in an air strike. Then, at 10 years old, he was forced to become his family’s breadwinner.

"Before the conflict, we enjoyed a good life. My older brother used to work as a building labourer and provide for the family. But since his death, we started the journey of suffering," Mansour told MEE.

Taiz had become unsafe, so the family fled to a village on its outskirts to start afresh, but there was no running water or electricity. 

Meanwhile, five members of the family, including his mother, developed diabetes and were relying on donations and help from relatives for their treatment and day-to-day living.

"The food and medicine prices kept increasing and my mother’s health situation has been worsening, so I had no solution but to look for a job," Mansour said.

More than 2.2 million children like Mansour were out of school in Yemen, with 1.7 million displaced and cut off from basic services, according to a 2021 report published by Save the Children.

Early on, Mansour tried to work in construction but found his body was not strong enough. So, he hired a motorcycle and started to work as a courier.

Two years ago, Mansour’s family returned to live in their damaged home, but they cannot help but remember Abdullah, who was killed at the house.

"The war has deprived us of everything beautiful," Mansour said. "I lost my brother, lost my studies and lost my future.

"A person my age should be in school and not on the street waiting on customers so I can return home with food."

From farming to handouts

Mohammed is a farmer in his 40s who lives in the northwestern province of Hajjah. 

Before the war, he and his family used to eat corn and mangoes that they grew and sold the rest at the market. 

But now, the father of seven and other farmers, who have been forced by the conflict to leave their land, are dependent on humanitarian aid.

"I was born on a farm, and it forms my life. I couldn’t imagine myself off of farmland, but things aren’t in our hands," Mohammed told MEE.

'I couldn’t imagine myself off of farmland, but things aren’t in our hands'

- Mohammed, farmer from Hajjaj

In 2018, bombs struck Mohammed's village repeatedly - including his land. One of the air strikes killed his cousin, but Mohammed had no choice but to leave his body and flee quickly with his neighbours.

"That day was like a nightmare. We didn’t bury my cousin but fled with children and valuable things like jewellery," he said. 

All of his livestock was killed in the attack. "They weren't targeted directly by air strikes. We don’t know why they all died," he said.

Mohammed and his neighbours walked for hours until a car came and took them to a nearby camp for displaced families, where they have remained ever since.

"We have been living in this desert where there is no water, not enough food, no work and we can't work for even one thousand Yemeni rial per day [less than $2]," he said.

"Here, we are only depending on humanitarian organisations to help us with food and basic services and some people resort to begging in the market."

In 2024, 14 percent of Yemen’s population - or 4.5 million people - were displaced, according to the United Nations refugee agency, UNHCR. 

Around 1.6 million of those displaced live in "substandard" living conditions,  "enduring extremely harsh conditions without viable alternatives" - including overcrowding, lack of adequate shelter, and limited access to basic needs like water, sanitation and hygiene - the UNHCR has reported.

Mohammed is caught in the middle. He said he hates the displacement camp where he and his family now live and where two of his children were born. None of his children are enrolled in a school. 

"Studying isn’t a priority for hungry people. We are vulnerable people fighting for enough food, and children help to fetch water for the family. Studying is a priority for people who have all basic services," he said

But the farm that he hopes to return to also has bitter memories: Mohammed's cousin and others killed in the 2018 attack are now buried on the land. 

Even so, he and his family hope to return.

"Now, we can’t access our village as it is in front lines," Mohammed said, referring to the landmines that remain even as fighting has stopped. "But if we can access it, we will return back to resume our work on farming."

No money, no son 

As the war unfolded, Salah stopped going to school. His parents were older and, with six siblings, he needed to be the family’s breadwinner. 

But his work as a street vendor in the Taiz province, where they are from, was not providing enough money for his family. So, in 2020, he decided to fight for Yemen's internationally-recognised government in Marib province. 

His mother, Um Salah, told MEE: "The first year, he was sending money every month and we managed to buy everything we needed. I also got medicine and witnessed some of the best days in my life."

The better times did not last long. In December 2020, Salah’s family and their neighbours were shocked to learn he had been killed in fighting. Um Salah blamed herself.

'I thought of the better income, but I didn’t think that I would lose my son'

- Um Salah, mother of deceased fighter 

"I was the reason for his death because I didn't stop him. I thought of the better income, but I didn’t think that I would lose my son," she said, unable to hold back her tears.

She had hoped to see her son's body, but those who had fought alongside Salah could not identify him among the other corpses in the aftermath.

The blame they feel over Salah’s death has further impacted the poor health of his parents, but they have struggled to get help as there is no longer access to free healthcare in the country.

Across Yemen, 46 percent of all health facilities are only partially functioning or completely out of service as a result of shortages of staff, funds, electricity, medicines and equipment, according to the World Health Organization.

Um Salah said: "[There has been] no salary since his death. I lost my son for nothing.

"I advise all mothers not to send their sons to fight and ask their sons to return from battles before they lose them."

Like Salah, most of the young people in their area have left school and become fighters because they were unable to find any other work. 

"I hope that war ends and all youth can access education and get jobs," she said.

Other families have had a slightly different experience after losing family members who had become fighters.

Saeed*, 56, is a teacher in Taiz province, but his salary is not enough to provide for the nine people in his family. 

So when his son, Ahmed*, 21, asked his permission to go fight with the Saudis at the Yemeni border, Saeed did not hesitate. He had heard it was lucrative.  

"My son wasn’t a child, and I didn’t ask him to join the fighting, but that was his fate. He was killed after seven months on the battlefield," Saeed told MEE.

Unlike Salah's family, Ahmed’s family has continued to receive a monthly salary from Saudi Arabia since his death. It is enough to pay for the basic services and even have some savings. 

"The salary helps me to pay for the education of my children and all other needs. Also, I have built a home from the salary," Saeed said.

The family's situation is better than before the death of his son, but Saaed said he hopes that the war ends so his children can have a better future.

"No one wants the war to continue as its impact touched all Yemenis," he said.

Conflicted interests

Yemeni journalist Mohammed al-Abid believes that ending the war is not a local decision but one that will be decided by the countries who have “their hands” in Yemen.

"Yemen witnesses a more peaceful situation compared to the early years of war but that doesn’t mean the ending of the war is soon," Abid said.

"The warring parties are almost balanced in the military force, and this makes the war continue for a long time."

Abid believes that there is no indicator of a peaceful solution as all negotiations have failed to produce an end to the war.

'They send Yemenis to front lines to defend them and not to defend the country'

- Hanan al-Asbahi, Yemeni journalist

“The United Nations has assigned several special envoys, and it was a success that the last one reached a truce in 2022. But it is difficult to approach an end to the conflict because the warring parties aren’t ready for it,” he said.

The latest UN special envoy for Yemen, Hans Grundberg, has made several visits to Yemen to meet different parties of the conflict inside as meeting with their allies outside the country.

But until now, he has been unable to reach an agreement for direct negotiations to end the conflict.

Abid said he believes the current situation is worse than the early years of the conflict as the war has a daily impact on the lives of Yemenis now - something that he said should be considered by the international community.

"It is true that there is no fierce fighting nowadays but there is an economic crisis that has left millions suffering to have enough food or access basic services like health and education," he said. 

"The fighting kills or injures people around it and damages some buildings, but the economic crisis hit the whole country."

After a decade of crisis, humanitarian needs in Yemen continue to rise. In 2025, an estimated 19.5 million people will need humanitarian assistance and protection, nearly 7 percent more than last year.

Across the country, more than 83 percent of the population now lives in poverty, according to the International Rescue Committee.

Hanan al-Asbahi, another Yemeni journalist, said she believes that there is a major gap between the country’s best interests and the priorities of the parties fighting in the war.

"Those people work hard to spoil any negotiations or a solution towards a peaceful agreement," Asbahi said.

There are several army groups supported by different countries and each group has their own demand, so it is difficult for them all to be gathered under one umbrella, she said.

“Those groups have been damaging the country, and they send Yemenis to the front lines to defend them and not to defend the country,” Asbahi said.

The Houthis are fighting on one side, while on the other, there are at least four fighting groups that receive salaries and support from various parties - including Saudi Arabia, the United Arab Emirates, Tareq Saleh (nephew of the late President Ali Abdullah Saleh) and the Yemeni government.

“No one cares about the families’ of those who have died or work towards an end to the war to help Yemenis resume their regular lives,” Asbahi said.

But this is exactly what Mansour, who lost his brother Abdullah, and many others are hoping for. 

He said he would like the government to support him and other people his age to return to school and achieve their dreams. 

“My dream is to become an architect. I lost my study but not my dream,” Mansour said. 

“I hope I can achieve this dream and participate in the rehabilitation and building of my city.”

*Pseudonym used for security concerns