The most prominent of stories to stream out of Yemen this week was the devastating killing of 14 schoolchildren in the capital on Sunday, following what is thought to be Saudi-led coalition air raids on a residential neighbourhood that struck near a school in the capital. A mass funeral was held for the young victims of the attack on Wednesday, which saw crowds of men spill into the streets of the capital carrying coffins draped with Yemeni flags. Though the death of the scho

Possibly the most important and daunting of news to seep out of Yemen this week – though it fails to apply as a shock – is the recruitment of child soldiers by the Saudi-led coalition fighting on the frontlines against the Houthi rebels. According to an Al Jazeera exclusive, the coalition, which fights alongside, and for government forces, takes on children from among poor families in Taiz and government-held areas in the south before sending them over the Saudi border where

After thirty years of dancing on the heads of snakes, one was bound to bite Yemen’s former President Ali Abdullah Saleh back. On this historic day for Yemen, the former heavyweight leader was killed on his own turf by his former allies, turned enemies, turned allies, and fatally turned enemies once again, the country’s Houthis rebels. News of the killing has once again divided public opinion between celebrating the death of a dictator and mourning that of a politician that ma

In September 2014, Yemen’s Houthi rebels allied with the country’s former leader in an attempt to take on the new transitional government of Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi. Finally equipped with Saleh’s arsenal of deadly weapons, the tribal militia marched into the capital, capturing state buildings and institutions and sending the government fleeing to the southern coastal city of Aden. Unwilling to witness its neighbour fall into chaos and jeopardise its own security just a few mil

Disturbing images showing severely malnourished children in Yemen have surfaced online, putting a horrific face to the war-torn nation where more than half of the population live under the global poverty line. Laying dazed and frail on a bed is six-year-old Salim Musabih whose frail image was captured by a Reuter's photographer in Yemen's Hodeida city, where Houthi rebels remain defiantly in control of the country's second largest port. In another image, the toddler sits amon

The United Nations called for the creation of an independent international body to investigate a series of serious violations committed by all warring factions involved in the Yemen conflict, as diplomats from the United States and the Gulf attempted to resolve the 17-month deadly war. A new report published on Thursday outlined a long list of grave human rights abuses by both the Saudi-led coalition and Houthi rebels, in a conflict that has left more than 6,000 dead. "Civili

Yemen's conflict has cost its economy more than $14 billion so far, according to a new report, as the Saudi-led coalition fighting Houthi rebels continues to pick up steam post-peace talks. The war, which began when Saudi Arabia formed a coalition to battle rebels following their September 2014 coup, has caused extreme damage to the country’s infrastructure, the joint World Bank, United Nations, Islamic Development Bank and European Union report said. "The conflict has so far

The United Arab Emirates has provided Yemen with more than £900 million in aid in the past 16 months, as coalition airstrikes continue to pound the war-torn country. More than 160,000 tonnes of food and some 111,000 tonnes of medical supplies were among the supplies sent, officials said on Wednesday, as well as nearly £600 million in development funding. Five power stations were built, including two in the southern coastal Aden city where residents suffer from a lack of elect

When airstrikes began pounding Yemeni soil, few expected them to continue for more than 13 months – and counting. "I never imagined it would last for this long," Riyam Ali said, a 22-year-old British Yemeni who has lived in Aden all her life. Riyam was in the comfort of her home when she heard the first sounds of war. Gunshot rounds, young men chanting, cars swerving and finally, a bomb that destroyed the building next door. A deafening silence followed as the factory w

"I ask all the parties and the international community to remain steadfast in support of this cessation of hostilities to be a first in Yemen's return to peace... Yemen cannot afford the loss of more lives." These are the words of United Nations special envoy to Yemen, Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed as he announced a much-needed ceasefire thirteen months after a war erupted in the conflict-ridden state. Not only can Yemen not afford to lose more lives, it quite literally cannot a