Lara Uhlenhaut

Yemen is edging closer to a renewal of all-out war between the Houthis and the internationally recognized government. Amid a rising civilian death toll and mounting military casualties, the UN Special Envoy for Yemen warned that the country faces “a greater risk of a return to large-scale conflict than at any time since the UN-brokered truce of April 2022.” Since the confrontation over Sana’a Airport in July, fighting on the frontlines has intensified.

The beginning of the year brought good news for Yemeni women: after six years of total absence from government, three women were appointed to the new cabinet formed in early February, followed by the historic naming of Yemen’s first female ambassador to the United States in April.

As the war on Iran continues to wreak havoc in the region, Yemen has been conspicuously absent from the escalating conflict. All eyes are on the Houthis, who have so far been reluctant to join the war. Should the Houthis mobilize, or should Israel and the US attack Yemen unprovoked, the threat to Sana’a, Yemen’s crown jewel and one of the best-preserved living ancient cities in the world, should worry us all.