A Third of the Bombing Sorties on Yemen Deployed from Eritrea
Gedab News has learned that more than a third of the approximately 18000 sorties deployed by the Saudi-Emiratee coalition against Yemen was launched from the Red Sea coast of Eritrea.
After initially training and arming the Yemeni Houthi rebels, the Eritrean government switched sides and supported the Saudi-Emiratee coalition allowing it to use Eritrean land, sea, and airspace to conduct the war in Yemen.
The UAE has a naval and airbase in the Eritrean port of Assab, close to Bab El-Mendeb. the southern mouth of the Red Sea.
The relentless military campaign that started in 2015 has turned many Yemeni cities into rubble exposing the people to unprecedented displacement, hunger, and disease in the history of the region.
It’s still a mystery why the Yemeni war has not produced floods of refugees fleeing outside its borders similar to other conflict zones in the region. However, millions of Yemenis are seeking refuge in their country’s mountains and deserts while others have surrendered to their fate and are being exposed to the Saudi-Emiratee bombardments.
The August 9 airstrike that killed about 40 children traveling in a school bus has triggered a widespread condemnation of the Saudi-Emiratee campaign in Yemen. Eleven adults were also killed while “79 people were wounded, 56 of them children” according to Yemeni sources.
The human cost of the crisis in Yemen has become so embarrassing to the international community to the extent that last week, the US Defense Secretary James Mattis warned and issued an ultimatum to the Saudi and UAE authorities to stop their campaign against Yemen within thirty days starting with a ceasefire.
As per the latest statements, the US wants to see peace talks between the Saudi-Emiratee coalition and the minority Yemenis Houthis, hoping for an end to hostilities soon.
The US warning has been hailed by diplomatic and popular organizations, though the bombs and fighter planes that the Saudis and Emiratees use are mainly supplied by the USA.
So far, shy pressure by the international community on the Saudis and UAE in the last two years to stop their campaign on Yemen didn’t bear fruits. However, the recent warning by the USA is expected to slow down the airstrikes that is attacking both military and civilian targets indiscriminately.
It’s widely believed that the recent murder of the Saudi Journalist Jemal Khashogji at the Saudi Embassy in Istanbul has caused the short-lived popularity of the crown prince to wane and brought international attention to the war in Yemen
To date, the airstrikes have resulted in the death of more than 12,000 people and exposed almost half of Yemen’s population of 28 million to disease and starvation.
Children are the worst affected by the airstrikes that claim the lives of tens of children daily.
Awate Forum