Fear and uncertainty for civilians as Yemen’s capital comes under attack

Sanaa had been mostly spared bombing since a truce between Yemen’s internationally recognised government and the Houthis was announced in 2023. That changed when the government launched a campaign to retake the capital. The renewed attacks matter because civilians had treated Sanaa as distant from the front lines.

Dozens of strikes have hit the city. An attack on Monday in Sa’wan killed a child and wounded seven civilians. Another strike hit Sanaa’s international airport and killed two workers. Residents say military facilities may stand near homes, farms and roads, making civilian harm possible even when attacks target Houthi positions.

Fear is changing daily life. Some residents are stocking up on food and fuel, while others are considering leaving. The government says attacks will continue until Sanaa is recaptured. If strikes intensify, the capital could again face displacement, shortages and wider insecurity.

The Houthis are a Yemeni armed and political movement. The source identifies them as the group controlling Sanaa, but it does not explain their origins, leadership or ideology. In widely established background, they emerged from Yemen’s northern Zaydi community and became a powerful insurgent movement. This background is not detailed in the article.

The Houthis have held Sanaa since September 2014. Their control matters because Sanaa is Yemen’s capital and a central political and military centre. The internationally recognised government says it wants to remove them and restore its authority there. Government forces, however, remain hundreds of miles away.

That distance means the immediate campaign against Houthi positions in Sanaa depends on air power. The Houthis also remain involved in fighting elsewhere, including Yemen’s west coast and around Taiz. Their continued control makes the capital a central objective, while attacks create risks for residents living near suspected military sites.

Operation Dawn of Yemen is a military offensive announced by Rashid al-Alimi, head of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council. Its central purpose is to take Sanaa from the Houthis, who have controlled the capital since September 2014. The operation marks a sharp escalation after Sanaa had been mostly spared bombing under a truce announced in 2023.

The government is pursuing this goal even though its ground forces remain hundreds of miles from Sanaa. Those forces are fighting the Houthis on Yemen’s west coast and around Taiz. Because they cannot quickly reach the capital by land, attacks on Houthi positions in Sanaa are being conducted from the air.

The government has pledged to continue the attacks until it achieves its objectives, especially recapturing Sanaa. That strategy has already caused civilian casualties and increased fear. It also risks turning a city away from the main front lines into a new centre of war.

The humanitarian impact is already visible, even though the article does not give a complete casualty total for all strikes. Since the offensive began, dozens of air strikes have hit Sanaa. One attack killed a child and wounded seven civilians, while another strike on the international airport killed two workers.

The wider fighting has displaced more than 200,000 people in recent weeks, according to the International Organization for Migration. Most displaced people came from Taiz governorate, where the heaviest ground fighting has taken place. These figures show that the crisis extends beyond the capital, even as Sanaa becomes more dangerous.

The campaign is still continuing, so its total impact may rise. The government says it will keep attacking until Sanaa is recaptured. Residents are responding by buying food and fuel, considering escape and living with fear that strikes could reach homes, roads or neighbourhoods.

Residents’ fear is rooted in the Saudi-led coalition’s Operation Decisive Storm, which began against the Houthis in March 2015. The campaign brought intense bombing to Sanaa and killed hundreds of civilians in air strikes. Those memories remain powerful because many residents experienced the capital as a battlefield rather than a safe place.

Saleh Ayidh’s family left Sanaa when that operation began. They lived in the countryside for six months, away from the assault on the capital. Now, as strikes resume, he says his family will decide whether to leave again if the bombing intensifies. His experience shows how earlier violence shapes present choices.

The comparison makes current attacks more frightening than isolated incidents. Residents fear another period of displacement, shortages and unpredictable strikes. The new offensive has already led people to stock up on food and fuel, suggesting that memories of 2015 are influencing behaviour as well as emotions.

The government cannot currently launch a direct ground assault on Sanaa because its forces remain hundreds of miles away. They are engaged in fighting the Houthis on the west coast and around Taiz. As a result, attacks on Houthi positions in the capital must come from the air.

The danger comes from how military facilities are placed within the city. Ghamadan Abood said strikes may target missile launch pads, equipment or other facilities, but some could be near neighbourhoods, farms or roads. A strike aimed at a military site can therefore kill or injure people who are not involved in the fighting.

The risk is already documented. An attack in Sa’wan killed a child and wounded seven civilians, while a strike on the airport killed two workers. Continued air attacks could make ordinary movement and life in Sanaa increasingly dangerous, even away from ground front lines.

War affects civilians through supply systems as well as bombs. When fighting disrupts roads, logistics, imports or fuel deliveries, shops may receive fewer goods and transport becomes more expensive. The source does not detail specific import restrictions, but it records how disrupted logistics and panic buying previously raised the cost of goods and fuel.

The mechanism is direct. If people fear supplies will stop, they buy extra food and fuel. That increases demand just as transport and deliveries are becoming harder. Grocery owners then face pressure to replenish stock, while households with limited money may struggle to afford essentials. The same pattern is now appearing again in Sanaa.

Residents are already stocking up on essentials. If air strikes and fighting intensify, access could become more difficult and prices could rise further. The result would be a broader crisis, with insecurity affecting household finances, food availability and people’s ability to remain in their homes.

Renewed air strikes could make Sanaa unsafe for civilians who had lived away from the main front lines. Residents may leave, as Saleh Ayidh’s family did in 2015, while others may stay but face fear, shortages and rising costs. More displacement would add to the 200,000 people already forced from their homes in recent weeks.

Essential systems are also exposed. A strike on Sanaa’s international airport killed two workers, and continued attacks could hinder movement and the city’s ability to receive or distribute supplies. Earlier fighting disrupted logistics and pushed up food and fuel prices. Residents are already stocking up because they fear those problems will return.

The attacks also undermine the fragile calm that followed the 2023 truce. The government has pledged to continue until Sanaa is recaptured, while the Houthis still hold the capital. Unless the fighting eases, civilian danger and displacement are likely to remain central concerns.