What’s Happening In Yemen? How To Stay Informed, Plus The Organisations To Support
Organisations On The Ground To Support In Yemen
After years of war, two-thirds of the population of Yemen rely on aid to survive. The following organisations are providing humanitarian relief.
- Muslim Hands – Yemen is already one of the most water-scarce countries in the world, the devastation of war has left over 18 million people without safe water and sanitation. Muslim Hands installs water tanks, reservoirs, pipelines and wells to provide water.
- Islamic Relief Worldwide – Islamic Relief interventions include food aid, water, sanitation and hygiene (WASH), nutrition and healthcare, orphan and child welfare, survival items and livelihoods.
- Médecins Sans Frontières (Doctors Without Borders) – The healthcare system in Yemen is near collapse. MSF provides lifesaving care to people injured in the outbreaks of violence and to patients suffering the long-term effects of war, such as mental-health problems, malnutrition, and maternal and childcare services.
- Yemen Aid – Established by Yemini Americans to provide humanitarian relief and to advocate for education, women’s economic empowerment and sustainable development.
- Saferworld – Independent international organisation Saferworld has established two women activist hubs in Yemen to provide a space for discussion, decision-making and coordinated action by women activists.
- Humanity and Inclusion – Works in Yemen to support people with disabilities, as well as those injured in the conflict. It also supports NGOs to consider people with disabilities in their emergency response.
Useful Resources To Help You Get Informed
A selection of news sources, films, photography and reports to learn from that chronicle the reality of living in conflict.
- Hunger Ward (2020) – This Oscar-nominated documentary provides an unflinching portrait of Dr Aida Alsadeeq and Nurse Mekkia Mahdi as they try to save the lives of children within a population on the brink of famine.
- The Photographs of Somaya Samawi – As a woman photographer, Somaya initially worked undercover. Today, she approaches her evocative images of daily life in Yemen as “a weapon of the truth”.
- War & Love by Sana Uqba – British Yemeni writer Sana Uqba’s poetry collection goes beyond the headlines and death toll of war to tell the human stories of those who have been affected.
- Human Rights Watch – Human Rights Watch investigates and reports on abuses happening in all corners of the world. Their website is a source of stories, reports and videos gathered from their expert researchers in Yemen.
- Al Jazeera – Years of war have left Yemen’s media landscape highly polarised. Al Jazeera journalists report independently from within the region.
- Amnesty International – Amnesty International provides resources to support campaigns against human rights abuses in Yemen, including those that target the LGBTQ+ community, journalists, gender-based violence and discrimination.
- The work of Iona Craig – Award-winning British-Irish investigative journalist Iona Craig is an expert on Yemen and the Arab Peninsula. Her website is a repository of reports, videos and podcasts on the ongoing conflict – you can read her explainer on the humanitarian situation here [LINK].
Maria Padget is Consulting Editor at Service95