Yemen: Seven illegal immigrants killed near Saudi Arabian border after crossfire

A survivor told on Saturday that at least seven illegal Yemeni immigrants were murdered in a crossfire while attempting to enter Saudi Arabia in the last 24 hours, according to Xinhua. He said that five bodies of migrants and 21 other wounded were taken from a border valley on Friday evening. He further said that two more bodies and five other wounded were retrieved this morning.

The event was confirmed by a survivor who returned home to Sanaa, Yemen's capital. According to him, they were trying to cross into Saudi Arabia on foot when they were caught in an exchange of artillery bombardment between the Houthis and Saudi border guards in Sanaa, just hours after their arrival.

Such mishaps have been reported regularly in this area. Since the civil war in Yemen erupted seven years ago, Monabih in Saada province has become one of the busiest crossing points into Saudi Arabia for illegal migrants who have lost their jobs.

In another incident, a person who chose to be anonymous, recently said that crowds celebrating a public holiday in the northern Yemeni province of Hajjah were hit by a ballistic missile launched by the Houthi on Saturday, September 25, killing at least six people and injuring 20 more.

The humanitarian catastrophe in Yemen

Yemen is the world's worst humanitarian catastrophe, with about 21 million people in need of aid, including over 11 million children. The country has become a living nightmare for children since the conflict began in March 2015. Only half of the health facilities are in operation and many of those don't have basic supplies like masks and gloves, let alone oxygen and other COVID-19 treatment equipment. Many healthcare workers haven't been paid on a consistent basis.

Children are still being killed and injured as a result of the fighting, and schools and clinics have been damaged or closed, disrupting access to education and health services. This has made children even more vulnerable, robbing them of their future.

According to an analysis in February, over 2.3 million Yemeni children under the age of five are expected to be malnourished by 2021. Around 400,000 of them are projected to suffer from severe acute malnutrition and may die if not treated quickly.

(Inputs from ANI)

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