In continuation with our column yesterday, the spurning of the truce is regrettable. The Houthi leadership has shown a very closed mind to what was a gesture of courtesy and compassion for the children of Yemen and the civilians who are in desperate conditions and need help badly. Not just medicines and surgical expertise but food and water after four months of being in the firing line.
The argument given that the coalition is using the truce as a five-day window to regroup does not hold water. The Saudi-led troops have been so restrained in their offensives so as to limit collateral damage in the towns and cities that this consideration has slowed them down. The very fact that their concern for the population is paramount in the decision to stop the fighting and send in supplies indicates their self imposed limits of targets.
We saw that intent in the landing of aircraft from Saudi Arabia and other nations, including the UAE, soon after Aden was under the loyalist command and the airport opened. Those pilots risked their lives to deliver the humanitarian aid because even as they were coming down the glide slope the airfield was being shelled by Houthi positions.
This, in itself, proves that taking care of the civilians is a mandate and it should be made clear that the coalition is not under any stress or threat that it needs to regroup. Sure, it does not want this war and would be happy to bring it to a fair and just conclusion but it would be detrimental to misread the strength of its resolve to help common people as a sign of weakness.
By denying fellow Yemenites a much needed breathing space, the rebels risk alienating them by insisting on keeping the finger on the trigger.
Since this is not a conventional war neither the Geneva Convention nor the rules of war from the over century old Hague Convention are given a look in even though Saudi Arabia and the coalition continue to abide by them. It is very tough and dangerous to fight in a guerrilla conflict where the enemy is not recognizable and there are no rules of engagement. The Houthis have made a big mistake in not allowing the truce to go forward. This will only increase the pressure on them but, unfortunately, it is the grassroot population that will have to pay part of the price by suffering because help was so near and yet, so far.
