VOI - Voice of Indonesia | RRI - Radio Republik Indonesia

Towards the end of 2021, humanitarian tragedies are still happening. Thousands of people are displaced as refugees, and suffer from hunger, due to conflicts in various countries. As happened in the Middle East. The endless conflicts there  led to the flow of refugees to Europe. There is a refugee crisis on the Belarusian border with Poland. As a result, relations between the two countries and also with the European Union have been strained. The European Union accuses Belarus of using the refugee chaos at the border as a political tool to pressure Europe. Belarus argued and countered the accusations by saying that Europe had broken promises about its willingness to accommodate refugees.

Conflicts and wars have caused thousands of people to become victims. Displacement is one of the real forms. And these conflicts, apart from Africa, generally occur in the Middle East, and also parts of South Asia.

The civil war in Yemen, in addition to causing displacement, material and infrastructure damage, has also caused suffering for the people who are still in the country. Yemen, which was once part of a region called Sham, has now been partially ravaged. Many historic buildings were destroyed by bomb and missile attacks. What is  more devastating is, the very large number of victims who died as a result of mutual attacks.

According to United Nations data, about 377,000 people have died. More than half of those who died in Yemen were an indirect result of the 7-year war, such as famine for example. Even more sad, many children who become victims, die due to malnutrition.

The war in Yemen, for which there is no sign of ending, began in 2015. At that time the Saudi Arabian coalition intervened with the aim of helping the government, after the Houthi militia seized the city of Sanaa. The Houthi militia is a group that has Iranian support. This fact shows that the intervention of other countries, with different directions and interests, has led to prolonged conflicts and civil wars. The situation is not getting any better, when major powers, including the United States and Russia, are involved.

The worst humanitarian catastrophe has occurred in Yemen, a once prosperous country, with a beautiful civilization and historical heritage. This tragedy, which does not know when it will end, will continue to take its toll. The United Nations Development Programme, UNDP, estimates that fighting and its effects could kill at least 1.3 million people by 2030.

This very sad situation and dire consequences, should be able to spark initiatives and steps towards peace. The question is, can the conscience of the leaders in Yemen, as well as other intervening countries, be open to stop this humanitarian tragedy?