UN Envoy: Yemen’s Escalation Worst in Years

Fighting puts civilians at growing risk

UN envoy Hans Grundberg expressed concern about the ongoing escalation of the war in Yemen, saying it is “among the worst” seen in years. He warned this is increasingly putting civilians at risk.

Fighting in Yemen has been raging for months, but recently there has been a pickup of cross-border attacks between Yemen’s Houthis and Saudi Arabia, involving a lot of airstrikes in the Yemeni capital city.

Being that this is a UN official, and the Saudis fly off the handle at a whiff of criticism, the focus was on the Houthis, warning against their attacks on Saudi territory and demanding they stop immediately.

While the Houthis have hit Saudi Arabia several times recently, it is a small fraction of cross-border strikes, with the Saudis carrying out dramatically more airstrikes against sites in Yemen.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.