For the sake of children

The ‘legitimate’ military action — an air strike on a Yemeni market in Saada — by the Saudi-led coalition killed 29 children under the age of 15 among a total of 50 people. With several dozens wounded as well, more are, unfortunately, feared to join the list of the dead or get maimed for life. Unicef says the air raid — which caught a bus full of children heading back to school from a picnic when the driver stopped to get a drink — marks a low point in the country’s brutal war.

While there have been calls upon the influencers to move to help end the catastrophe for the sake of innocent children of Yemen, the blame game among the warring parties is on as well. The news coverage of Al-Masirah, a pro-Houthi ‘rebels’ TV network, is drawing sympathies from all corners of the world. As a counterpoint, the Saudi-led alliance says the strikes targeted missile launchers responsible for a deadly missile attack on the Saudi city of Jizan a day back, accusing Houthis of using children as human shields.

With the war in the impoverished country having already left nearly 10,000 people dead, the deaths of such a big number of children in one fell swoop must serve as the moment to finally push the warring parties, including the UN Security Council and the international community, to bring the conflict to an end. The Sadaa market attack demonstrates a continued disregard for human life and suffering as civilians continue to pay the highest price of the war in Yemen that erupted three years back.

The parties to the conflict must make the most of the upcoming September 6 gathering in Geneva to which, according to UN’s envoy to Yemen Martin Griffiths, the warring sides would be invited for discussing ‘a political solution’ that is ‘available’. How many more innocent children’s lives does the world need to stop the war in Yemen?

Published in The Express Tribune, August 11^th, 2018.

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