If there’s a hall of fame for U.S.-sponsored atrocities, Yemen belongs in the top tier. What began as a localised political crisis has morphed into one of the most devastating conflicts of the 21st century, thanks largely to the empire’s insatiable appetite for control. Yemen is now a killing field—a place where bombs, blockades, and starvation are wielded with surgical cruelty, leaving a trail of devastation that stretches far beyond its borders.
The U.S. doesn’t get its hands dirty in Yemen directly; that’s what allies like Saudi Arabia and the UAE are for. Instead, Washington provides the bombs, planes, logistics, and political cover, ensuring the destruction is efficient, profitable, and—most importantly—aligned with American geopolitical goals. The Yemeni people, of course, are expendable.
The Origins of the War: A Crisis Made in America
The war in Yemen, often mischaracterised as a purely regional conflict, is deeply entangled in U.S. foreign policy. It officially began in 2015 when a Saudi-led coalition launched a military campaign to reinstate President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, ousted by Houthi rebels. But the seeds of the crisis were sown much earlier.
Decades of U.S. drone warfare in Yemen under the guise of counterterrorism had already destabilised the country, killing hundreds of civilians and radicalising communities against both Washington and the corrupt Yemeni government it propped up. By the time the Houthis, a Zaidi Shia movement, seized Sana’a in 2014, Yemen was already a fractured state. The Houthis claimed they were fighting corruption and marginalisation, but their rise also alarmed Saudi Arabia, which painted them as Iranian proxies to justify its intervention.
The reality is more nuanced. Iran provides the Houthis with political support and weapons, but the group remains largely autonomous, fighting for its own local and national interests. However, framing the conflict as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran served Washington’s interests perfectly: it allowed the U.S. to back Saudi aggression under the pretense of countering Iranian influence while keeping its own fingerprints off the carnage.
The U.S.-Saudi Axis: A Marriage of Convenience and Carnage
Saudi Arabia’s intervention in Yemen has been nothing short of a humanitarian catastrophe. With billions in arms sales from the U.S. and logistical support—including mid-air refueling, intelligence sharing, and targeting assistance—the Saudi-led coalition has conducted a bombing campaign so indiscriminate it makes the word “surgical” laughable. Schools, hospitals, markets, weddings—nothing is off-limits.
The infamous 2016 bombing of a funeral in Sana’a, which killed 140 people and injured over 500, was carried out using U.S.-supplied bombs. Reports from Amnesty International and Human Rights Watch have documented countless similar atrocities. Yet, despite mounting evidence of war crimes, the U.S. has continued to arm Saudi Arabia and the UAE, raking in billions for its defense contractors.
Even when the Biden administration claimed it would end support for “offensive operations” in Yemen, it was business as usual. The U.S. quietly continued selling arms, maintaining Saudi military equipment, and blocking U.N. resolutions calling for accountability. The message was clear: profits and alliances trump human lives.
Blockades and Starvation: A Weapon of War
If bombs don’t kill you in Yemen, hunger might. The Saudi-led coalition has imposed a naval blockade on Yemen, choking off essential supplies like food, medicine, and fuel. Hodeidah, Yemen’s main port, has been a frequent target of coalition airstrikes, crippling the country’s ability to import goods.
The blockade is not just a logistical measure—it’s a deliberate act of collective punishment. By 2021, over 16 million Yemenis faced acute food insecurity, with millions teetering on the edge of famine. Children, as always, bear the brunt: UNICEF reports that a Yemeni child dies every ten minutes from preventable causes like malnutrition and disease.
Let’s be clear: this isn’t collateral damage—it’s strategy. Starvation has become a weapon of war, wielded with the full backing of the U.S. and its allies.
Iran’s Role: A Convenient Scapegoat
Saudi Arabia’s narrative that it’s fighting Iranian expansionism in Yemen conveniently ignores its own role in creating the conflict. While Iran has provided weapons and training to the Houthis, its involvement is minimal compared to the firepower Saudi Arabia has unleashed with U.S. support.
That said, Iran has skillfully used Yemen to bleed Saudi Arabia and expand its influence in the region. By supporting the Houthis at a relatively low cost, Tehran has kept Riyadh bogged down in a quagmire, diverting attention and resources from other fronts. This has fueled broader regional tensions, with Saudi Arabia and its Gulf allies accusing Iran of fomenting instability across the Middle East.
Houthi Retaliation: Striking Beyond Yemen
The Houthis, meanwhile, have expanded the conflict beyond Yemen’s borders. Using drones and ballistic missiles—some likely supplied or upgraded by Iran—they have launched attacks on Saudi oil facilities, airports, and even tankers in the Red Sea. In 2019, they claimed responsibility for a devastating attack on Saudi Aramco’s oil facilities in Abqaiq and Khurais, temporarily halving Saudi oil production.
More recently, Houthi forces have targeted U.S. ships in the Red Sea and launched drone strikes on Israeli-owned tankers, signaling their willingness to escalate the conflict further. These actions have heightened tensions across the Middle East, drawing the U.S. even deeper into the quagmire under the guise of protecting “freedom of navigation.”
A Regional Powder Keg
Yemen’s war has not just devastated one nation—it has destabilised an entire region. Saudi Arabia and the UAE have turned Yemen into a battleground for their competing interests, funding rival militias and carving out spheres of influence. Iran has used the conflict to its advantage, while Israel, ever the opportunist, has exploited Gulf fears of Iranian dominance to deepen its military ties with the UAE and Bahrain.
The U.S., for its part, remains the great enabler. Its arms sales and unwavering support for Saudi Arabia have fueled the violence, while its broader “maximum pressure” campaign against Iran has ensured that the conflict continues to fester.
Conclusion: Yemen’s Endless Nightmare
Yemen is a killing field, and the U.S. holds the shovel. Like Guatemala in the 1980s, Yemen’s suffering is not an accident but the calculated result of imperial policy. The bombs, the blockades, the starvation—all of it serves a purpose: to maintain U.S. dominance in the region, to enrich defense contractors, and to send a message to anyone who dares defy the empire.
The rhetoric of defending allies and combating terrorism is as hollow as it is cruel. Yemen’s blood is on America’s hands, and the suffering of its people is a direct consequence of policies designed to prioritise power over humanity. The question is not whether the U.S. will face accountability—it won’t. The question is how many more nations will become killing fields before the world wakes up to the reality of empire.
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