The year of 2018 witnessed a lot of events top listed of course is the continuation of the on going war on Yemen since 2015 that has destroyed the country’s infrastructures and led UN to call Yemen the worst humanitarian crisis ever.
Since the very beginning the event started to happen in string of dramatic sequence some have developed some have changed and others got even worst starting with the conflict of Aden between the Southern Transitional Council (STC) and the government of Hadi.
Gun battles erupted in Aden on 28 January 2018 when security forces loyal to the Hadi government attempted to prevent pro-STC demonstrators from entering the city. STC captured the government headquarters in Aden. The government also ordered its own troops to return to base, following fierce clashes across Aden.
A new event and may be one of the most important thing was Secretary-General appointing Mr. Martin Griffiths of United Kingdom as His Special Envoy for Yemen in 15th of February , Mr succeeds Ismail Ould Cheikh who according to most of Yemenis failed in his mission as a UN envoy that Houthis refused to receive him in sana’a any more .
Thursday 19th of April was one of the most prominent days of 2018 because in this day the warplanes of the coalition led by Saudi regime and backed by US and Britain killed Mr. Saleh As-Sammad when targeted his car with several raids in hodiada city , his last order to his companions when noticing the planes over his head was that ,” avoid driving the car in a place full of people ,if I was meant to be killed there is no need for more civilians to be killed because of me”.
In 2018 the international news agencies, magazines and websites focused on the Yemeni issues; starting with associated press which opened some of the most controversial files in Yemen in June AP exposed the UAE regime when releasing a series of press investigation that reported the torturing and abusing of Yemeni detainees occurring in UAE prisons in Aden.
Again Associated press spotted the light on the relationship between the Saudi regime and its miner ally UAE with Al-Qaida in Yemen reporting that thousands of the coalition’s fighters are members of al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula, or AQAP adding that USA administration knew that.
However the most salient one was that made by BUZZ FIED that talked about numbers of assassination operations again IN Aden against some of Al-Eslah party and again were led by UAE with the help of the US former officers
The events of the year hasn’t stopped here ,it escalated severely that in august the war planes of the coalition had committed a horrific crime when targeted a bus in dahian full of children who were in a field trip , the attack which was conducted by American weapons led to the death of more than 28 child not more than 11 years old whose bodies scattered and shredded in the neighboring areas
This crime has had a huge effect and echoed in the whole world though this wasn’t the only heinous crime committed in 2018 which was full of heart wrenching massacres and crimes.
Toward the end of the year many of the human rights organizations announced that the number of death in Yemen raised to more than 8 0000 people due to the war and raids on most of the Yemeni areas in addition to more than 85000 children who died due to hunger and acute malnutrition the picture of the 7 years old Mael Hussain who died due to starvation stunning the world and still an icon to the miserable situation of children in Yemen.
More over in the UN announced that the famine loomed Yemen and hit more than 18 million people in Yemen
In 2018 the killing of the Saudi journalist Jamal kashoggi in his country consulate in Istanbul reflected on the Yemeni issue and opens the eyes towards the brutal war that Saudi regime is waging against Yemen and led so many countries like Italy Germany ,and Canada to announce halting arm sales to Saudi.
However such incident didn’t stop Saudi coalition to go on and start a new battle in Yemen this time in the key port of Hodeidah where the coalition declared the commence of a military offensive against Houthis without caring about the human situation there or about the fact that the port is the main entry to the humanitarian aid and is responsible for more than 90 percent of imports to Yemen,during the operation the coalition waged thousands of raids and killing more than 30000 people and led to enlarge the circle of poverty ,diseases ,famine, and epidemics.
The most important thing was the vote of the US congress that was adopted by some of the democrats senates who stood against the US backing and supporting of the Saudi led coalition in its war on Yemen according which they said is not legal and against the constitution of the USA, though this year was full of sad and horrible incidents but a glimmer of hope has sparked from Sweden when finally the Yemeni parties gathered and negotiated on one table to finally signed there historic.
As a ceasefire in Yemen comes into effect the plight of the Yemeni people remains ongoing. The war on Yemen is known as the “forgotten war” because it lacks international attention, despite being one of the biggest humanitarian catastrophes in modern history.
Till the end of 2018 the war has made three-quarters of the population in need of humanitarian assistance and pushed the country to the brink of famine, while the United Nations has considered the crisis facing the Arab country as the worst in the world.
Yemen’s humanitarian crisis is the most important story in the world, but because its victims are poor and practically invisible to the rest of the world their stories are mostly unheard and then ignored even when they are told.
