Yemen Is Not Starving. It Is Being Starved.

MARCH 25 marks the sixth anniversary of the start of the brutal and tragic war in Yemen. The Saudi-led coalition’s offensive operations, code-named Operation Decisive Storm, began with airstrikes and a naval blockade against Houthi rebels with the goal of restoring Yemen’s ousted government. With early and extensive U.S. military support, this war has created what many consider the most severe humanitarian crisis on the planet.

During his presidential campaign, Joe Biden promised a policy reset on Yemen. “I would end U.S. support for the disastrous Saudi-led war in Yemen and order a reassessment of our relationship with Saudi Arabia,” Biden said. “It is past time to restore a sense of balance, perspective, and fidelity to our values in our relationships in the Middle East. President Trump has issued Saudi Arabia a dangerous blank check. Saudi Arabia has used it to extend a war in Yemen that has created the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, pursue reckless foreign policy fights, and repress its own people.”

Biden’s promise offers hope to those committed to peace, but his administration must do much more than help pick up the pieces. Yemen needs humanitarian aid, an end to the blockade, and good faith diplomacy.

The Biden policy reset comes at an urgent moment. The United Nations is sounding an increasingly louder alarm of famine if conditions in Yemen do not improve. Before Christmas, U.N. Secretary-General António Guterres warned that Yemen was in “danger of the worst famine the world has seen for decades.” More recently, the Norwegian Refugee Council’s Mohamed Abdi said, “Yemen is not starving. It is being starved.”

Tragically, the Saudi- and United Arab Emirates (UAE)-led coalition’s war on Yemen has pushed millions to the brink of famine and caused more than 24 million people to rely on food assistance for survival. Aid agencies describe Yemen as the worst place on earth to be a child. The conflict has claimed the lives of at least 85,000 children under the age of 5. There are several things President Biden can do.

He must first reverse the Trump administration’s Foreign Terrorist Organization designation on the Houthis, enacted in January, as this will be a recipe for more conflict and famine by blocking aid delivery and complicating an already complicated peace process.

To make good on his campaign promises, Biden must block weapons deliveries to Saudi Arabia and the UAE. He must also work with Congress to sign into law a War Powers Resolution, prohibiting intelligence sharing, logistical support, and spare-parts transfers for coalition airstrikes. Such a demonstration of support from Congress will help Biden exert meaningful pressure on the warring parties to end the violence and recognize the constitutional role of Congress in war-making decisions.

Biden must also restore and expand humanitarian-aid funding to all parts of Yemen to address malnutrition and disease and urgently curb the spread of COVID-19. His administration must pressure Saudi Arabia and the UAE to meet and expand their humanitarian funding pledges for Yemen.

Finally, Biden must work with the United Nations to bring about a negotiated solution to the conflict—one that brings the warring parties to a ceasefire, ends the blockade, and creates a lasting peace that includes all parts of Yemeni society.

As we approach this heartbreaking anniversary of unimaginable human suffering, action on Yemen must not wait a moment longer. By working with Congress, the U.N., U.S. allies, regional and local actors, and representatives of Yemeni civil society—especially women and girls—the Biden administration can help all sides find the road to peace in Yemen.

EDITOR'S NOTE: Since the publication of this article in our March 2021 print edition, the Biden administration paused its pending arms sales to Saudi Arabia and the UAE and in early February announced its intent to reverse the Foreign Terrorist Organization designation on the Houthis and end all U.S. support for offensive operations in the war in Yemen.