VIDEO ـYemen: Life in a minefield

Lahj, Yemen – 10 April 2019: Lahj governorate is different from other governorates of Yemen. Fierce wars took place on its land, not only with Houthis, but with members of Al-Qaeda and ISIS. They used it as a den for them for a period of time. Lahj succeeded in restoring security to a large extent. The majority of terrorist elements were killed, but there are still some elements in what is described by officials and people as "sleeper cells".

Lahj has 15 directorates, with about 35 archeological sites dating back to the ancient Yemeni civilization, most notably the remains of ancient buildings and fortresses, the famous citadel of Al-Mokhatra and the fortress of AL-Hajar. The city is basically rural, and its population relies mainly on agriculture and raising sheep, so it was named the country of “vegetables and fruits”. Before it was attacked by Houthis it was an important barracks for Al-Qaeda. It was cleared recently, and now checkpoints and legitimate government forces are spread along the roads inside the governorate.



The road from Aden to Lahj was not easy, and was fraught with dangers. On the one hand, there are the "sleeper cells". On the other hand, there are mines planted by Houthi militias everywhere in the Yemeni lands. After the militias were vanquished in Aden and a number of southern governorates, they planted mines heavily in the sites they were expelled from, leaving behind fields of death. Residents say Houthis and their allied forces have planted anti-vehicle mines and anti-personnel mines in Lahj and on the roads leading to it from other governorates. According to experts at Rasd Coalition for Monitoring Human Rights Violations Houthi planted more than 40 thousand mines in Aden, Dalea, Lahj, and Abyan, while the total number of mines removed from Yemen is 200 thousand. So far 226209 mines, explosive devices, and shells have been removed from the southern governorates and the western coast, where the explosions are concentrated, according to the National Demining Program of the Yemeni Cabinet.



According to estimates by the Yemeni Ministry of Health, 3,400 cases require artificial limbs as a result of mines and missiles,(Between 2015 and 2018). The national demining program estimated the number of victims in the southern and western parts of the country at 1236, including 468 children, while there are 1884 injured, including 645 children.

Stories and tragedies of mine victims

We heard many sad stories of the victims of the mine disaster. According to Dr. Baum, a resident of Shabwa governorate, after the liberation of Behan directorate he had four friends working in minefields, and one day the mines exploded and they died together, next to each other. Upon the return of the residents of Al-Jahmalya and Tha'abat in Taiz to their homes after the governorate was liberated, landmines exploded while they were opening the doors to their homes and on the road leading to their homes. This caused deaths and injuries, and so far their homes are still deserted despite the liberation of the governorate.



Abdul Wahid: “Why are they doing this to us?”

Among the victims we met was Abdul Wahid Qasem al-Wafi ,11 year ـold who lost both arms and one leg in a mine explosion near the family's home, leaving him unable to live his life normally. He spoke to us with tears in his eyes, "I went out with my grandmother one morning to help her with sheep herding in Nihm near my house. While I was chasing the sheep I stepped on a mine and it exploded cutting off half my leg, and when I fell another mine exploded cutting off both my the hands, and suddenly my whole body was bleeding."



"Suddenly I realized that the Houthis took me to a hospital in Sana’a, they cut off the remains of my leg, but didn’t remove the shrapnel from my body. A month later I left this hospital and went to the military hospital in Marib and completed the treatment", Abdul Wahid said. "I am not in pain because of the wounds, but because I can’t write, play, or run like normal people. I wait for my mother to feed me”, he explained. He pointed out that at the King Salman Center an artificial foot was made for him, and he is now waiting for the artificial hands, and lots of other people are waiting as well. He continued: "I want to cover the looks of my artificial hands because other kids will be afraid of them. Even if they are not like normal hands I will cover them with the shirt and no one would know the difference."





"The Houthi militias told my grandmother that she was a spy who provided information to the legitimacy, prevented her from leaving the house, and asked her that I join the recruits," Abdul Wahid said.




At the end of his words, Abdul Wahid asked the Houthis: Why are you doing this to us?

Abdul Wahid is a case among 383 children affected by Houthi mines, along with 164 children killed by mines since the war started in 2015. According to statistics by Rasd Coalition for Monitoring Human Rights Violations, he is one of 75 children living in Marib governorate, who were disabled permanently because of the Houthi mines. Twenty nine children were also killed in Marib by mines since the outbreak of war there, according to official statistics in a report by the human rights office in the governorate.

Al-Munther faces his disability with a smile and hope

Al-Munther Mohammed, who is ten years old, decided not to surrender to what the Houthis did to him. He resisted despair with hope, and resisted pain with a smile. A mine injured him while playing with his friends outside his home; he lost his left leg, and some toes from the other leg. We approached him to know the details of his story; he said with a smile: "I know about Egypt and I love it. At first I was sad, but then I accepted what happened and I’m not sad any more. This is God’s will”. He continued: "Before the accident I loved to play. I wanted to grow up to become someone important, and to have lots of money to buy lots of toys. My mother told me that when I’m older I will buy toys. I heard about many kids in our area who were injured because of mines, I didn’t know how it looked, and how the injury happens. But after I was injured, I knew the mine is usually hidden."

Al-Munther insists on holding on to hope. He says, "I can work with only one leg. My mother told me she’ll get me an artificial leg; I’ll train to use it and I’ll be okay."

Mine is in garbage

Abdo Al-Rajhi, 10 years, lost his left leg and parts of his hands, but his story is different. He found the mine or the mine found him in the garbage. According to his doctor, Hayel Al-Mydani, “Abdo is from the town of Hays of Hodaidah . He is displaced with his mother and father in a village east of Al-Khoukha. The child took the mine from the trash in front of the house, carried it home without realizing its danger, and started playing with the mine with his hands until it exploded. He was hit by shrapnel in the right and left thighs, abdomen and arms. His mother was injured by shrapnel in the jaw. He was taken to the field hospital in Al-Khoukha, as there are no main hospitals in the area, there are only children and nutrition centers. We opened this hospital using our own resources, and we performed the necessary first aid for the child."





Dr. Hayel continues: "What drew my attention in this child is that despite the seriousness of his injury, I heard him whispering to his mother: I am fine, do not be afraid."

With a slaughtered throat, intermittent breaths and fading energy, the child cried out, "Oh God, heal me, Oh God, heal my mother, destroy the Houthis, Mama .. Mama”. Then he lost consciousness and fainted.


Death under a tree

The stories of the victims are endless. Children were not the only ones hit by mines’ fire, but elders and women also had a share. Among them was Am Abdel-Aleem Mahmoud, who went to sit in the shade of a tree to catch his breath, but a mine exploded cutting his two legs. He told us about the details: "I went out one afternoon to buy some essential medicines, and it was a long tiring walk, because the sun was burning in the summer. I saw a tree and under it a stone, I walked towards it to rest from the heat and the sun, and when I was about to sit a mine exploded. Some kind people took me to the hospital; I walk up to find my legs were cut. It was a big shock."



He added while crying, “I have no one to serve me, I am a man living alone and I was hardly able to earn my living. Now I am trying to find someone to buy me artificial legs, even if only one leg to help me move."



Abdullah Mohammed Al-Saab fought with one foot

Abdullah Mohammed Al-Saab -who lost a leg in a mine explosion, but insisted on defending his homeland- recounts his story, "I am 21 years old, I was a student at the university and I was working to support my family which depended on me for their livelihood. When I first heard that the Houthis are attacking us, and that the country needs its youth, I didn’t hesitate and I and my brothers Al Mujahideen (the fighters) stood like one man, and we deterred the enemy’s attacks for many days, thank God. But many of us died and were injured."




Abdullah continues, “Afterwards we attacked and controlled some Houthi sites, and later the Houthis blew up our house. One day, as I walked to the front, I stepped on a stone-shaped mine in the middle of the stones in the mountainous area. The injury was severe, and my right leg was amputated. I stayed in the hospital for three days, but I couldn’t stay more, and left going back to the front after three days of the accident. I participated with my brothers Al Mujahideen in the war with one leg."

“Then some kind person helped to marry, and I was glad that I got married. After the explosion of our house and after I lost my leg our situation –me and my family- became difficult without a livelihood. My wife gave birth to a baby a month and half ago, and the responsibility increased."

Dalila: A mine victim




Yemeni women have borne a great deal of suffering because of the ongoing war. She is the mother of the martyr, the mother of the injured, and one of the victims of the mines as well. Dalila Abdo Mohammed Mokbel is one of the victims of mines planted by Houthis. She is in her twenties, but grief added to her age, and the war drew deep lines in her face that make you think she is an old woman. Dalila recites her story: "I am from Sabr el Muadem, from Al Shaqab region. Our region became a battlefield, so we had to move to another area. But due to the lack of income my family couldn’t continue living in the city. We were forced to return to our home in the area destroyed by rockets. At the time we did not know what was waiting for us; when you are in war, you do not guarantee your day."





Dalila continued while crying: "One day, I went out to fetch water as usual, despite the great fear of the snipers stationed on top of the mountain where we lived (Sabra). We did not know that there were mines planted by the Houthis. I stepped on a mine while I was walking. I bled heavily, and sat for a while until I found someone to take me to hospital. I was shocked to know that my foot was amputated, so I was bedridden, but I was satisfied with what God destined for me. We were displaced to the city with my helpless father, who did not have any income. My brother was also suffering from heart valve disease. Our main income came from agricultural crops, but we could not reach the cultivated land because Houthis were concentrated there. Now we live in the city relying on benefactors. Sometimes we do not have the necessary daily sustenance. We suffer from pain, and forced displacement; most of my families are wounded. Some of them died with sniper shots or by missiles’ shrapnel."

Death in a minefield

During our trip to Lahj, we found one of the fields where a demining team was working. We got out of the car to talk to the team and to learn more about this disaster. The team supervisor, Fadl Ahmed, confirmed that the Houthis planted large sections of the Yemeni lands with mines. "There are two cars that exploded on this road because of the mines. One of them was carrying a family of two children, a father and a mother. Many young people lost limbs because of mine explosions because it is difficult to distinguish between the safe and mined roads, as there are no signs and people depend on those with experience with mined roads and areas,” he added.






He explained that demining depends on a map of the fields, which the Houthis did not deliver, adding that it would take a well-trained team and a big budget to provide modern mine detectors. He explained that the most advanced mines could be detected using satellites, cars, reflective devices and others.




Aly Al-Shaarey, coordinator of the National Mine Action Program in Yemen, pointed out that the mines are concentrated in the southern areas and the western coasts, which include Al-Makha, Zubab, Al-Kohkha, Hayes, Al-Wazeia, Al- Bahyda, Marib, Bab Al-Mandab, Shibwa (Asilan and Bihan), and Lahj especially Toor Al-Baha and Al-Modaraba directorates.

"There are parts of Al-Dalea, Hodeidah, Abyan, Lahj and Aden that are mine-affected. They have not been cleared. They are very dangerous; there is not enough equipment to deal with the mines. The UN is responsible for confronting this crisis because they have allocated large sums of money and gave it to the Houthis for demining. This is illogical, how do you expect those who planted the mines to remove them? They use it to plant more minefields. Also, the Houthis did not give the United Nations or the legitimate government a map of the locations of the mines, and the legitimate government is mandated to communicate with the United Nations in this regard,” he continued.

Conflicting numbers

Al-Shaarey, explained why the numbers concerning mines and their victims contradict, saying: "The total numbers of mine victims are still not accurately available, but some of them are enough to show us the atrocity of the crime. Between May 2015 and April 2016, landmines killed at least 18 people and injured more than 39 people in Taiz alone, according to the National Organization for Mine Action". He added, “There are significant challenges facing the work of survey teams, including weak resources."





“As an example I am working depending on personal efforts, and I have not received a salary since 2015. There is no headquarters for the staff to develop accurate database, and we do not have the resources to estimate the number of victims."



Al-Shaarey explained that the United Nations, represented by the Development Program, is providing assistance only within the emergency fuel program, food expenditures for the survey and clearance teams, and the teams of the Mine Action Center in Aden and Hadhramout. He noted that UNICEF funds mine awareness campaigns, the number of those targeted by the campaigns was 700,698, 566290 of which are school students and 655 activists were trained for awareness-raising.

"The role of the United Nations is negative," said Dr. Arafat Hamran, head of Rasd organization for rights, freedoms and human rights violations. He explain saying it was unable to compel the Houthi militia to stop planting mines. It did not pressure them to hand over mine maps. It even granted the militia $ 160 million, supposedly for a demining program without safeguards, or a local intermediary organization, as the United Nations does in its programs of this kind. This raised many questions concerning its appeasement of the militia, which is contrary to the values of the UN and its international covenants.

Eshraq Makhtari, vice president of the International Commission of Inquiry into Houthi crimes and mines, agreed with him, saying: “Granting amounts of money to the Houthis for demining is illogical. How would the Houthis commit themselves to demining, while they are the ones who planted the mines, and unfortunately they continue to plant them in remote and agricultural areas and main roads.




Dr. Hamran confirmed that the Houthis had planted some 500,000 underground mines, 200,000 of which had been removed after considerable efforts by the National Army and the coalition forces under the leadership of the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. They played a key role because their removal required substantial funding, and Yemen is living in difficult economic conditions. Also, some 50,000 mines were planted along the Yemeni-Saudi border. Marine mines have also been planted close to the port of Hodeidah, threatening international navigation. He pointed out that the UAE has provided advanced mine sweeping vehicles that helped remove many of them. Mine engineers in Marib also invented a local demining structure and assisted the national army with mine clearance and destruction.




He continued that according to data released by Rasd organization for Rights and Freedoms, nearly 2,000 people died of landmines, mostly children and women. He pointed out that there are innovative forms of mines, including football and stones, to deceive the viewer. Also 3700 Yemenis, mostly children and women, lost limbs, whether both feet or one foot or a palm, and a medical team in Marib, Taiz and Aden works on the rehabilitation of the injured, and the installation of prostheses to them. And here King Salman Center for Humanitarian work is providing great support for them.

Crisis exacerbated

Brigadier General Taher Hameed, head of the Military Engineering Division in Taiz and a de-mining expert, said that following Yemen's signing of the Mine Action Protocol along with a number of countries in Hague in 2012, mines appeared in the governorates of Abyan and Aden, killing civilians. The crisis exacerbated in 2015 with the siege of the Houthi militia of the Yemeni governorates. The militias began to plant their mines in every inch handed over to the legitimate forces. Today governorates such as Dalea, Jouf, Marib, Lahj and Abyan are suffering, but Taiz, Hajjah and the western coast from Hajjah north to Bab al-Mandab in Taiz in the south are the most affected. In Taiz for example there are 750 amputations and 350 deaths according to statistics by the International Human Rights Organization.



Security challenges

During our tour in Lahj governorate we met with General Saleh Al-Sayyid, the security director in the governorate, who assured us that the governorate was able to achieve security stability to a large extent, after it was a base for al-Qaeda and ISIS. They were one of the arms of the Houthis, and killed 150 soldiers in one year. The governorate was previously besieged, and the governor and security officials were prevented from entering it. Al-Qaeda occupied the governorate building, and used it to as premises for conducting trials for citizens. He added that police buildings and prisons need to be rebuild after the destruction caused by Houthis and Al-Qaeda.



Al Qaeda pockets

For his part, Major General Ahmed Abdullah Turki, governor of Lahj, said that security is currently stable in the governorate, although it is on the border with the Houthis from Jahbub and Khor Al-Amira area to Yafa area. There are battles in the areas of Tor Al-Baha, Karash, Al-Qubaitah, Al-Mudarabah and Ruwais. He pointed out that these battles will not end except with the implementation of the outputs of the national dialogue and UN resolution 2216. He added that Lahj was a barracks for the Houthis and Al Qaeda, and when the Houthis entered they took control of its directorates for 3 months. As for Al-Qaeda some pockets may still exist, but in general its dominance and presence in the governorate ended.




The governor stressed that had it not been for the role of the Coalition for Supporting Legitimacy in Yemen, all these victories would have not happened. He added: “They have made great efforts, and the Yemeni blood mixed with the Arab blood. Those who deny that are ungrateful. They supported us with weapons, and securing the salaries and pensions of citizens. They also made developmental efforts and reconstructed roads.



He continued: "We receive part of the aid coming to Yemen from the coalition countries, primarily the UAE and Saudi Arabia, and some international organizations, particularly the UAE Red Crescent and the King Salman Center. We receive monthly relief materials for the displaced in the areas of Karash, AL-Qubaytah, Al-Wazeaya, and the western coast of Hees. In light of the lack of resources in the governorate, relief represents 50% of our needs. But we are aware that the burden is great. The coalition countries provide aid to Yemenis who are under the control of Houthis in Saada, Hajja, Hodeidah and others."

Checkpoints

We toured the streets to observe the reality of the security situation ourselves. We found several checkpoints, especially at the entrances to the governorate. We approached one of these points, “Regal checkpoint”, and asked the commander of the checkpoint Mohamed al-Ahmadi about the procedures followed for security in the governorate. He told us that there are 3 checkpoints to secure the entrances of the governorate, the distance between each point and the other is approximately one and half kilometer, and every checkpoint is formed of 80 soldiers. He confirmed that security measures are tight, especially at entrances, ID cards are checked and vehicles are searched.






Conscript Ahmed al-Asma'i said: "We have seized cars with explosives, TNT and shells, and there are weapons of the war remnants that are directed to the north to reach the Houthis, where there is a flourishing "business" of selling war remnants. After the pressure on the Houthis increased they started trading in war remnants to earn dollars. There are traders who facilitate smuggling from Lahj, and Dhamar to the north. Sometimes, shipments of mines and weapons are also seized while going to support Houthis in the areas that are not liberated yet. Two weeks ago, a large cargo was seized at Yafa checkpoint."




Abdul Hameed Mohammed, one of the residents of the governorate, talks about the period in which Al-Qaeda existed in Lahj, "We have had a difficult period full of terror; continuous strikes and successive bombings that killed many people. The schools were irregular. We were unable to even go out to buy bread for our children. But now thanks God the conditions have improved, we feel there is stability and we hope that things will return to what it used to be. It is the country of vegetables and fruits as it is famous with agricultural. We want to improve the infrastructure, as everything was affected by the war."

“Kharaz” refugee camp

In the directorate of Mudaraba, one of Lahj's directorates, 8,000 African refugees live; most of them come from Somalia after crossing the Gulf of Aden to reach Yemen. They are among thousands of refugees, some of whom were horribly killed during the trip, either drowning or suffocating due to overcrowding in the boats.

There is a small number of refugees in Sana'a, but they are mainly concentrated in Kharaz camp, which was established as a temporary solution for refugees from the Horn of Africa, until the end of the conflicts in their countries, especially Somalia. The camp is a number of buildings provided by the UN High Commissioner for Refugees; it includes schools and clinics and food rations are allocated to it.

Jawad Mohammed, the refugee education program's officer at Save the Children organization, said that in the forefront of the crisis experienced by camp residents is the extreme heat in the summer, the isolation imposed by the camp's geographic location in the mountains, and the lack of proper education.



This report is a part of a series of investigative report ,”Yemen: War Atrocities in the Land of Fear”A 30 ـ Day, by Iman Hanna .Hanna has taken a 30-day trip to monitor the suffering of the people during the war .