What’s happening in Yemen today
4.9.2015 edition
By the Reported.ly Team
We are creating a daily rundown of events in Yemen as Saudi Arabian-led airstrikes against Houthis that began March 26 continue. The Houthi militia has been fighting the Yemeni government for nearly a decade, and in recent months has made enormous gains across the country, including capturing the capital, Sana’a.
For an explanation of what happened in the first few days of the military action, read our synopsis.
Update 5:48 p.m. PT (12:49 a.m. GMT)
Ship carrying 47,000 tons of wheat blocked from Yemen
The ship’s agent, Ocean Marine Services, says it was stopped by coalition warships from entering al-Saleef port, north of Hodeidah, Reuters reports.
The agent said it was asked for U.N. guarantees that the food would not go to military personnel and only be received by civilians.
Yemen’s food supply has been under threat since the Saudi-led offense began, since Yemen imports much of its food.
Lawsuit filed against U.S. government for not evacuating citizens
The American-Arab Anti-Discrimination Committee (ADC), the Council on American-Islamic Relations (CAIR) and Asian Americans Advancing Justice-Asian Law Caucus (ALC) held a press conference to announce a lawsuit.
They’re suing Secretary of State John Kerry and Secretary of Defense Ashton Carter, asking for “government action to evacuate American citizens trapped in Yemen.”
More within our story on an American who escaped:
The latest on evacuations from the State Department:
“We are aware of some American citizens who remain in Yemen. We remain in contact through a variety of means to advise American citizens in Yemen about the opportunities that present themselves for people to leave, if they choose to.”
Coalition spokesperson: Airstrikes today concentrated on brigades supporting the Houthis
At a daily press briefing, Brig. Gen Ahmed Asiri said brigades were the concentration of today’s airstrikes, with the goal of cutting communication.
From the Saudi Press Agency:
Asiri said that the air operations targeted today, some brigades supporting the Houthi militias, including 19th, 22nd, 21st and 33rd Brigades in Bijan, Taiz and Shabwa respectively.
IOM: 4,900 from Yemen have arrived in Africa
The International Organization for Migration (IOM) said more than 4,900 migrants have come to Africa with their help, more than 200 today alone.
Reports: Yemen’s defense ministry hit by airstrikes
AFP and National Yemen report that Yemen’s defense ministry in Sana’a was hit by repeated airstrikes in the afternoon.
Update 10:50 a.m. PT ( 5:50 p.m. GMT)
Houthis advance in Shabwa
Reuters reported that Houthi forces, aided by tribal chiefs and security officials, advanced in Attaq, the provincial capital of the mainly Sunni Shabwa province, 458 km southeast of Sana’a, despite heavy coalition airstrikes in the area yesterday.
Daytime airstrikes continue in Sana’a and Aden
A number of airstrikes on targets in and around Sana’a and Aden starting at mid-day were reported on Twitter, including an attack on a cement factory in Amran, 53 km (33 mi) northwest of the capital, and airstrikes on Sana’a Faj Attan hill, repeatedly bombed since the offensive began.
Norwegian photojournalist arrested for espionage
Reports surfaced today that Raymond Lidal, a Norwegian freelance photojournalist, was arrested on March 28 in Sana’a, and charged with espionage by the Houthis, reportedly for photographing airstrikes without a journalist visa.
Lidal’s arrest was confirmed to AFP by the Norwegian Foreign Ministry, while broadcaster NRK confirmed Lidal had contributed footage from Sana’a to them. He appeared on an NRK video report from Sana’a on March 25, reported for NRK on August 2013 and had covered the 2011 student protests against Saleh when studying Arabic in Sana’a. In his last tweet on March 28, Lidal was attempting to verify a photo reportedly showing anti-aircraft batteries deployed by the Houthis in residential areas.
UN: Prepare for mass displacement
The UN Special Rapporteur on the human rights of internally displaced persons, Chaloka Beyani, urged the international community to prepare for massive displacement and humanitarian crisis as conflict torn Yemen further descends into chaos. An IDP camp, hospitals, schools and civilian buildings have been damaged by airstrikes and power and water supplies cut.
“Those responsible for violations of international humanitarian and human rights law, including the indiscriminate targeting of civilians, must be held accountable.”
In prepared remarks to media, UN Secretary General Ban Ki-Moon blamed the Houthis for the conflict, urged member states to allow humanitarian access, called for the protection of civilians and urged a political solution.
Iran’s Khamenei: Airstrikes cause genocide
Strong televised statements by Iran’s religious leader Ayatollah Ali Khamenei about the Saudi-led offensive were tweeted in English, comparing Saudi actions in Yemen with Israeli actions in Gaza.
“This is a crime and genocide that can be prosecuted in international courts… Riyadh will not emerge victorious in its aggression.”
India completes evacuations
India completed its’ air evacuations from Sana’a today, having evacuated more than 4,640 Indian nationals and about 960 foreign nationals from 41 countries. Kerala’s chief minister appealed to Prime Minister Modi for the evacuations to continue until Saturday, as a number of his constituents are still stranded in Yemen.
ICRC medics describe their boat journey to Aden
The International Committee of the Red Cross released a video with testimonies by members of the medical team that traveled from Djibouti to Aden by boat yesterday.
The ICRC follows it’s own humanitarian response to the Yemen crisis through live curation and a Twitter dashboard.
