Displaying items by tag: Yemen

Days after the UN called for a halt to fighting in Yemen amid the coronavirus pandemic, a two-week ceasefire was declared by the Saudi-UAE coalition. But the Houthis said they would keep fighting unless a years-long siege on the impoverished nation is lifted. The conflict has killed over 100,000 people and pushed millions to the verge of famine. The vulnerable impoverished people now have their first coronavirus case, and the country is now bracing itself for the pandemic. Continue to pray for a de-escalation in the fighting, widely seen as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran, and for the Houthis to join the UN-sponsored talks for a settlement to the five-year conflict. Pray particularly for God to soften the heart of Mohammed al-Bukhaiti, the Houthi spokesman.

The Lord has moved the hearts of workers in Saudi Arabia and Yemen to have a special prayer focus for the Khawlan people, a tribe with a unique Semitic language living in a region straddling the border between Yemen and Saudi Arabia. During a special prayer gathering in Saudi Arabia for the Khawlan Tribe in October, those present sensed that God was encouraging a call for the global church to join in a five day prayer focus for these unreached people. Would you join in? People can pray at any time, and there will be a special prayer focus for this people group from 14 to 18 February. Click the ‘More’ button for a five-day prayer guide translated into various languages, including English, plus a video. 

Yemen has suffered a three-year civil war. Over 10,000 people have died, and three million have been displaced. Many are starving or on the verge of having nothing to eat. Malnutrition and infant mortality are becoming normal. Pray that ships, aeroplanes and trucks will be given permission to bring the abundance of food and supplies that are needed. Pray that those who seek to exploit others due to high prices will be led by God to put aside greed and help the many who are battling poverty. Pray that those who are fighting one another will put aside their differences and go to the negotiating table to work together for peace. Roads, houses, schools, factories, oil fields, and hospitals are destroyed. Pray that peace will come so that rebuilding can begin.

European countries temporarily halted arms exports to Turkey after its military incursion into Syria. But Europe’s other arms trading partner, Saudi Arabia, has caused deaths or injuries of 18,000 in Yemen, where 24.1 million need humanitarian assistance. Despite these figures, EU countries still have arms deals with the Saudis. The UK only halted arms exports in June after exports licences were found to be unlawful. Saudi Arabia was France's second-biggest weapons client last year: over €1 billion worth, including armoured vehicles used in or near Yemen. Only Spain suspended arms exports to Saudi Arabia, citing ‘use of this type of armament against a civilian population’. Why would EU countries halt arms to Turkey due to conflict, but not to Saudi Arabia for the same reasons? There could be several reasons, but two stand out - business and alliances.

Yemen - Five years of war between Iran-backed Houthi rebels and Saudi/US backed government forces have created the world's worst humanitarian crisis. This Iran-Saudi rivalry threatens to grow as Houthis increase rocket attacks on Saudi Arabia. Syria - Assad, aided by Russia and Iran, has won the war. But killings in Idlib Province continue. Libya - A UN-recognised Government rules in Tripoli. A rival government controls much of the east. Each side has oil fields within its territory and its own central bank in this civil war. 1,000+ have been killed and 1.3 million people need urgent humanitarian help. Democratic Republic of Congo –25 years of violence has displaced 4.5 million people. A new government has not brought peace. Armed groups wreak havoc in a conflict fuelled by access to lucrative mineral reserves. A year-old Ebola outbreak has been declared a Global Health Emergency. Afghanistan –Washington is currently trying to convince the Taliban to engage directly with the Kabul government. There is a report today of a new Taliban reconciliation initiative.

A fragile calm took hold in Hodeidah on 18 December, after sporadic gunfire between Houthi fighters and forces loyal to the government. Two days later it was being hailed by many as a positive step on the path to peace for the war-torn country. However the agreement is open to different interpretations by the warring parties. It talks of ‘mutual redeployment of forces’ from Hodeidah and other ports. The Houthis do not see this as meaning that they need to withdraw, while the other side thinks they must do so - a key point of contention. See. Everyone is praying that the truce will hold. The humanitarian situation is beyond atrocious. The majority of malnourished people don't know where they will get their next meal. Women can't produce milk for their children. People die daily. 22 million people need aid. 8.4 million face starvation. Pray for immediate co-ordinated availability and distribution of all that is needed.

On 6 December, delegations from both the Yemeni government and the Houthi rebels began peace talks near Stockholm. Abdullah al-Alimi, a representative of the Yemeni government, tweeted that the conference was ‘a true opportunity for peace’. Mohamed Abdelsalam, who heads the Houthi delegation, promised to ‘spare no effort to make a success of the talks’. Pray for God to quell the scepticism of observers. Pray for the Yemeni government to resist launching an all-out attack on the key port city of Hudaydah, currently controlled by the rebels. The talks began encouragingly, with an agreement to exchange 5,000 prisoners: see

Politicians are challenging Donald Trump’s relationship with Saudi Arabia. Senator Elizabeth Warren said that the president has refused to halt weapons sales because he is more interested in appeasing US defence contractors than in holding the Saudis accountable for Jamal Khashoggi’s murder or for thousands of Yemeni civilians killed by those weapons. Senator Bernie Sanders is equally critical of Trump’s relationship with the Saudis, citing it as an example of his liking of foreign dictators. The Senate voted 63-37 to run with Sanders’ resolution to force Trump to end US support for the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen. That same day, it emerged that Riyadh had confirmed a $15 billion deal with defence contractor Lockheed Martin for a missile defence system. One observer said Trump’s determination to preserve Saudi arms sales was an example of the ‘stranglehold of defence contractors on our military policy’.

Peace talks between all sides in Yemen’s conflict could resume soon in Sweden. The date could still slip, but the aspiration is for Houthi rebels and the Yemeni government to meet early in December. They would be supported by a Saudi-backed coalition. Pray for every person needed for these initial talks to make an appearance in Sweden. A demand for 50 wounded Houthi fighters to be transported to Muscat for treatment must be met before Houthi leaders will attend the talks: this should happen soon. Pray for Britain, the US, and other allies to have clear positive conversations with Mohamed Ali al-Houthi, head of the rebels. Pray for a spirit of mutual trust to be developed. and for communication links to be strengthened. Pray for an increased distribution of UN aid, and for the desperate humanitarian crisis to end.

Save the Children (SCF), using UN data, have found that huge numbers of children under 5 perished from severe hunger. Some 84,701 children may have died between April 2015 and October 2018 because of a lack of food. Parents had to witness their children wasting away, unable to do anything about it. Since the Saudi-Emirati military intervention in March 2015, commercial imports of food through the vital Hodeidah port have been reduced by more than 55,000 tonnes a month, enough to meet the needs of 4.4 million people, half of whom are children, SCF said. The World Food Programme says that up to 14 million Yemenis are now at risk of starvation as fighting rages on in Hodeidah. 'Any further decline in imports could well lead directly to famine,' it warned. Multiple past attempts to hold negotiations between the government alliance and Houthis have failed.