In a situation that shares striking similarities to the Berlin Blockade, the Yemeni people are struggling to meet the most basic need — feeding themselves. In an attempt to scare away Houthi rebels, a major gas firm controlled by Saudi-backed Yemeni government stopped delivering gas to any area that was being controlled by the rebels. This situation reminded me of the Berlin Blockade back in 1948-49 when the Soviet Union blocked off East Berlin in an effort to limit the ability of France, Great Britain and the United States to travel to their sectors of Berlin. As a result, the Berlin Airlift came to the aid of the starving, suffering people inside East Berlin. The Yemeni people need a Berlin Airlift. Right now, they are resorting to the primitive ways of cooking by using fire wood to prepare their meals. Fuel imports in March were less than one-third of the national requirement, according to the UN’s Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs. Furthermore, the shortage of fuel forced factories to lay off their staff, taxi prices to increase astronomically and hospitals to start closing wards because they use diesel to power their generators. What’s worse is the black market situation it’s creating in that people are walking around with water bottles of propane and charging 5 times the usual price. The whole situation isn’t benefiting anyone at the moment and I don’t know who should lead the charge, whether it’s the United States or another country, but I think someone has to come to the aid of the people in Yemen who are being deprived.
