
The attacks on Sanaa were in response to the Houthis firing two ballistic missiles towards Riyadh and southern parts of the kingdom. The Saudis intercepted both. Although Yemen has not reported any cases of the Covid-19 coronavirus yet, this is partly because the country is already in the middle of the biggest humanitarian disaster in the world. The fact that Saudi strikes have frequently hit hospitals and relief camps means that Yemen’s already weak healthcare system had become non-existent after years of war. The strikes also marked a slide back to even worse times, as Sanaa had not been hit by the Saudis ever since they began indirect talks with the Houthis in September.
The escalation came after a relatively calm start to the year and further reduced hopes that a peace agreement of some sort might be in the offing. Some analysts have been debating why the Houthis would have escalated fighting at this time. The short answer is that they had the advantage of having nothing to lose. With the world, including Saudi Arabia, focusing on the coronavirus pandemic, the Houthis, who have reportedly been gaining ground in the war, did not want to give up their advantage. But the way Saudis returned fire serves as a reminder that in this war, like most others, nobody really wins.
Published in The Express Tribune, April 1st, 2020.
Like Opinion & Editorial on Facebook, follow @ETOpEd on Twitter to receive all updates on all our daily pieces.
COMMENTS
Comments are moderated and generally will be posted if they are on-topic and not abusive.
For more information, please see our Comments FAQ