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Yemeni Civil War (2015–present) facts for kids

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Yemeni Civil War (2015–present)
Part of the Arab Winter, the Yemeni Crisis and the Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict/Qatar–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict
Yemeni Civil War.svg
Military situation in Yemen on 13 February 2019
     Controlled by the Supreme Political Council (Houthis)

     Controlled by the Hadi-led government and allies      Controlled by Southern Transitional Council      Controlled by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant (ISIL)      Controlled by Ansar al-Sharia and Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP)

(For a map of the military situation in Yemen and border areas in Saudi Arabia, see the detailed map here.)
Date 19 March 2015 – ongoing
(9 years, 9 months and 2 days)
Location
Yemen, southern Saudi Arabia (spillovers)
Status

Ongoing

  • Yemen's capital city, Sana'a, captured by the Houthis.
  • Saudi-led coalition forces intervene in Yemen to restore the Hadi-led government.
  • The Hadi-led government is reestablished in Aden.
  • 2016–19 Yemen cholera outbreak
  • Former president Ali Abdullah Saleh is shot and killed by a Houthi sniper in the Battle of Sana'a; Houthis gain absolute control over the entire city.
  • Aden is captured by Southern Transitional Council forces from pro-Hadi forces in the Battle of Aden.
Territorial
changes
As of May 2016: AQAP controls 36% of the country (193,000 km²)
Main belligerents

Supreme Political Council

  • Houthis
  • Pro-Saleh forces (until 2017)
  • Some Popular Committees
  • Sana'a-GPC forces

Cabinet of Yemen

  • Pro-Hadi Security forces
  • Yemen National Army (YNA)
  • Al-Islah
  • Popular Resistance Committees
  • Popular Committees
  • Southern Movement
  • Strategic Reserve (pro-Hadi Saleh forces)

Saudi-led coalition
 Saudi Arabia
 United Arab Emirates
 Senegal
 Sudan
 Morocco (2015–19)
 Qatar (2015–17)
Academi security contractors

United States Green Berets
France French Army Special Forces Command
Academi


Southern Transitional Council (from 2017)
Tareq Saleh forces (from 2017)

  • National Resistance
  • Tihamah Resistance

ShababFlag.svg Al-Qaeda
Ansar al-Sharia

  • AQAP

Islamic State ISIL-YP
Commanders and leaders
  • Mohamed al-Atifi (2016–)
  • Mohammed al-Houthi (2015–)
  • Mahdi al-Mashat (2018–)
  • Hussein Khairan (2015−16)
  • Abdul-Malik al-Houthi
  • Abu Bakr al-Salami


Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi
Ali Mohsen (2016–)
Khaled Bahah (2015–16)
Hussein Arab (until 2017)
Ahmed Saleh (2017–)
Tareq Saleh (2017–)
Saudi-led coalition:
King Salman
Muhammad bin Salman
Mohammed bin Zayed
Tamim bin Hamad (2015–17)
Abdel Fattah Abdelrahman Burhan
Macky Sall
Mohamed VI (2015–19)

Nasir al-Wuhayshi 
Qasim al-Raymi
Nasser al-Ansi 
Ibrahim al-Rubaish 
Khalid Batarfi
Ibrahim al Qosi


Abu Bilal al-Harbi
Abu Osama al-Muhajer (POW)
Strength

Supreme Political Council:

150,000–200,000 fighters
100 warplanes and 150,000 soldiers
30 warplanes
15 warplanes and 300 troops
15 warplanes
10 warplanes and 1,000 soldiers
6 warplanes
6 warplanes and 1,500 troops
4 warplanes and 6,000 troops
2,100 troops
4 warships and warplanes
1,800 security contractors

Ansar al-Sharia

  • AQAP: 6,000–8,000

ISIL: 300
Casualties and losses
"Thousands" killed (per Al Jazeera; as of May 2018)
11,000+ killed (Arab Coalition claim; as of December 2017)

1,000-3,000 soldiers killed
10 captured;
3 aircraft lost;
9 helicopters lost
20 M1A2S lost
1 frigate damaged
United Arab Emirates Over 120 soldiers killed
3 aircraft lost
3 helicopters lost
1 watercraft damaged (HSV-2 Swift)
Sudan 1,000–1,200 soldiers killed
Bahrain 8 soldiers killed
1 F-16 crashed
Qatar 4 soldiers killed
Morocco 1 soldier killed
1 F-16 shot down
Jordan 1 F-16 lost


Academi: 15 PMCs killed
1,000 killed, 1,500 captured

91,600+ killed overall in Yemen (11,700+ civilians)
500+ killed overall in Saudi Arabia
49,960 wounded overall in Yemen (10,768 civilians)
3,154,572 people displaced

84,701 children died from starvation (per Save the Children) and 2,556 people died due to a cholera outbreak (April 2017–October 2018)

The Yemeni Civil War is an ongoing conflict that began in 2015 between two factions: the Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi led Yemeni government and the Houthi armed movement, along with their supporters and allies. Both claim to constitute the official government of Yemen. Houthi forces currently controlling the capital Sanaʽa, allied with forces loyal to the former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, have clashed with the forces loyal to Hadi who are based in Aden. Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant have also carried out attacks, with AQAP controlling swathes of territory in the hinterlands, and along stretches of the coast. On 21 March 2015, after taking over Sanaʽa and the Yemeni government, the Houthi-led Supreme Revolutionary Committee declared a general mobilization to overthrow Hadi and expand their control by driving into southern provinces. The Houthi offensive, allied with military forces loyal to Saleh, began fighting the next day in Lahij Governorate. By 25 March, Lahij fell to the Houthis and they reached the outskirts of Aden, the seat of power for Hadi's government. Hadi fled the country the same day. At the same time, a coalition led by Saudi Arabia launched military operations by using air strikes to restore the former Yemeni government. The United States provided intelligence and logistical support for the campaign.

According to the UN and other sources, from March 2015 to December 2017, between 8,670–13,600 people were killed in Yemen, including more than 5,200 civilians,. They estimated more than 50,000 have died as a result of an ongoing famine due to the war. With Iran suporting the Huthi and Saudi Arabia opposing them, the conflict has been widely seen as a proxy war and a means for Saudi Arabia to combat Iranian influence in the region.

In 2018, the United Nations warned that 13 million Yemeni civilians face starvation in what it says could become "the worst famine in the world in 100 years." The international community sharply condemned the Saudi Arabian-led bombing campaign, which included widespread bombing of civilian areas. The bombing campaign has killed or injured an estimated 17,729 civilians as of March 2019 according to the Yemen Data Project. Despite this, the crisis gained less international media attention than the Syrian civil war. The US has been providing bombs to aid the Saudi forces and airstrikes in Yemen. In March 2019, this led the US senate to pass a resolution to end US support of Saudi Arabia. It was vetoed by President of the United States Donald Trump, and in May, the Senate failed to override the veto.

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See also

Kids robot.svg In Spanish: Guerra civil yemení (2014-presente) para niños

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