The NEU calls for the immediate end to airstrikes on Yemen, one of the world’s poorest countries, whose people have been plagued by a decade of war.
US and UK airstrikes against Yemen risk igniting a wider regional conflict and further inflaming tensions in the Middle East.
Yemen’s civil war since 2014, coupled with military intervention against the Houthis by a Saudi-led coalition including the UK and the US, has left 50,000 people dead and triggered one of the world's worst humanitarian crises, severely impacting Yemen’s children. According to UNICEF, 13 million children in Yemen needed humanitarian assistance in 2023, some two million were internally displaced, and more than 11,000 children had been killed or maimed. Yemen’s education and health services for children have been disrupted by damage to schools and hospitals.
The international community must work towards peace in the Middle East. This requires a ceasefire in Gaza, the release of hostages, an end to military attacks on Gaza and the immediate cessation of airstrikes on Yemen.