Meanwhile, In Yemen…

There are many images which have been foisted upon the west through its media sources. We all remember the picture of the Syrian boy who washed up on a beach in Turkey.

There is also “Aleppo boy” who was rescued from the rubble after an airstrike. (What was the girl’s story? She was not as photogenic as Omran Daqneesh, and so was ignored by the media. An interesting article about how the White Helmets used the boy for propaganda against Assad can be found here.) Two equally important articles showing the White Helmets for who they REALLY are HERE and HERE.

These are, of course, just two of the horrible images of war in Syria. But releasing these images had a purpose, that of demonizing Assad.

There is another war going on. It is a  war few people speak of. There is far less coverage of it in the news, but the effects this war has on its population are just as devastating. It is the war in Yemen.

On one side are the Huthis, an armed group whose members belong to a branch of Shi’a Islam known as Zayidism. The Huthis are allied with supporters of Yemen’s former President Ali Abdullah Saleh. On the other side are anti-Huthi forces that are allied with the current President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi and the Saudi Arabian-led coalition.

Members of the coalition include the United Arab Emirates, Bahrain, Kuwait, Qatar, Jordan and Sudan. The USA and UK have been providing key intelligence and logistical support to the coalition.

The USA, UK, France, Spain, Canada and Turkey transferred nearly US$5.9 billion worth of arms to Saudi Arabia between 2015 and 2016, including drones, bombs, torpedoes, rockets and missiles, which risk being used to facilitate serious violations in Yemen.

Strangely enough, though the Amnesty International article I have quoted above is quite thorough, it fails to mention that many of the pilots flying Saudi-owned American jets, which seem to be indiscriminately bombing hospitals, schools, and markets, are from Israel.

So there we have it, all the countries currently fighting (or helping to fight) Assad in Syria (illegally) are now ganging up on a relatively small band of un-sophisticated fighters known as the Huthis, in Yemen.

There is, however, one notable exception absent from this coalition: the western media. In Syria, the media generates sympathy for civilians in order to discredit Assad; in Yemen, on the other hand, the coalition supports the government. Surely, if the truth about the situation there were to leak out, it would show the ‘allies’ for what they truly are. It would point the finger of atrocities straight at the west. It would show that WE are to blame (since the Huthis have no air-force.)

American cluster bombs and white phosphorous munitions, both illegal weapons of war, and both used by Israel against Palestinians, are now being used in Yemen by another US ally, Saudi Arabia. The effects of these weapons can be seen in the images at the end of this article.

So while massive resources go into scripting the overthrow of Assad in Syria and setting all sorts of traps for him (Ghouta, Khan Sheikoun, barrel bombs – because he has helicopters, etc…) the people of Yemen are forgotten and their images are forever put away, never to be shown for what they are.

(Follow-up to this article here.)

*** WARNING — The following contains VERY GRAPHIC CONTENT ***

 

There is also a blockade in Yemen. As usual, clean water, food, and medical supplies cannot get to those who need them most. Many Yemeni are starving, as are their children.

 

Western media shows us what we want to see. It is entertainment, not news. It is as far removed from truth in the world as anything could be.