“It’s a suffering I wouldn’t wish upon any woman” — Nada Abdelasalem, a Gaza war survivor. 

It’s been over 11 months since Israel invaded Gaza, and the situation continues to go from bad to worse.

The war has not only impacted lives but has deeply shaken humanity, especially when women and children are specifically targeted.

UN Women estimates that 70% of the total casualties in the Gaza war are women and children, with 10,000 women among the dead, including 6,000 mothers who have left behind 19,000 orphaned children. 

Unfortunately, for the women who are surviving, their existence feels no different from being trapped in a living coffin. They might wish they had been killed in the invasion instead.

Since the Onset of Israel – Gaza War…

The women in the war-affected region are helpless. They are crushed under mountains of sorrow. 

First, there is the unbearable pain of losing their children. Then, for some, it’s the grief of losing a brother; for others, their parents, and for many, their husbands. 

On top of all this, they have no roof over their heads, and they are forced to live in refugee camps without access to clean water, food, or basic hygiene. 

The weight of these tragedies is overwhelming, leaving them with little hope and unimaginable suffering.

The lack of necessities for survival has impacted their overall well-being and dignity. 

“We lived in a cozy three-bedroom apartment with a kitchen, built by my husband after years of hard work in construction. But when the war erupted, we lost everything, including my five-month pregnancy. 

We are forced to live in a single tent, with toilets that aren’t even enclosed by four walls. I can’t shower regularly to maintain proper hygiene. I feel like my privacy is constantly being violated.” — Reham conflict survivor. 

The situation for women in Gaza is so dire that they don’t even have extra clothes to change into. Many were forced to flee their homes wearing only the clothes on their backs.

“I wear a prayer robe for everything – to sleep in, to go out,” — Nada, a war-torn victim. 

The situation is even worse, as nearly 1 million women and children now have almost no food, clean water, restrooms, and sanitary pads. It has created a poor environment, as diseases spread rapidly in these unbearable living conditions.

The Doors of Aid Are Almost Closed

What could be worse than all of this? Sadly, for the women of Gaza, their suffering goes even deeper as they endure conditions even more horrific than what has already been described.

According to the World Health Organization and UN agencies, there have been 117 attacks on Gaza’s health infrastructure since the war began. 

These attacks have led to the closure of 64% of primary healthcare centers, and half of the hospitals are now non-operational.

The most heartbreaking aspect of this situation is that every day, 150 women in Gaza give birth to a child. With fuel, medicine, water, and health supplies rapidly diminishing, women are forced to give birth without anesthesia. 

“The war turned our lives upside down,” Etemad Assaf says, rubbing the clothes with her hand.

“Every night, I feel like I’m going to give birth now because I’m so tired.”

“You see? Is this a suitable life for a pregnant woman? A tent, cold, open air, and the lack of the necessities of life?”

Additionally, it is estimated that 15% of these pregnant women experience birth complications, requiring basic or comprehensive obstetric care. Sadly, several women have reported dying during or before giving birth to a child. 

Furthermore, according to a survey, around 50,000 women are currently pregnant, and more than 690,000 menstruating women and girls have limited access to menstrual hygiene products.

Help for diseases is a distant thought; right now, the condition of women in Gaza is so dire that they don’t even have access to basic medical facilities.

Being Women in Gaza 

For women in Gaza, it feels like they are forced to endure the constant fear of death every day—whether from bombings, the lack of healthcare resources, or the unbearable grief of losing their loved ones.

Survival is becoming increasingly difficult with each passing day, especially for women who are pregnant or have recently given birth. 

Many areas are grappling with severe hunger and food shortages, which makes it even more challenging for women to care for their children and newborns. Many have lost their breadwinners and are now relying solely on humanitarian aid to survive.

Finding milk for their children has become nearly impossible, and providing basic nutrition is a constant struggle. 

As the situation worsens, these women are forced to make heartbreaking choices, trying to sustain their families with whatever little they can find. 

The lack of food, medical care, and safety is pushing them to the brink, with no end in sight to their suffering.

Their only hope for improvement lies in the end of the war and the continuous flow of humanitarian aid and essential resources. Without peace and consistent support, their struggle for survival will only grow more desperate.

Despite the lack of sustainability and safe access, the UN has dispatched life-saving and humanitarian aid to Gaza. 

Unfortunately, this aid is insufficient, and more support is urgently needed for the women of Gaza, particularly for pregnant women and newborn babies.

It is crucial to note that no fuel has entered Gaza since October 7, leaving food, electricity, and other necessities out of reach for its residents. 

The only thing sustaining them is hope—the hope that the conflict will end soon and that essential supplies like medicines, healthcare resources, and food will once again become accessible.

Education is the most basic right of every child. But for a staggering 224 million out of school children, education is a luxury they can’t afford.

That’s why, through this article, we are debunking the false mirage of all the “development in educational” and shedding light on:

• The current status of such millions of out-of-school children
•  Major driving forces behind the education crisis globally
•  Potential solutions

244 Million Out of School Children Globally

In 2022, a UNSECO report displayed that over 244 million children and youth between 6 and 18 won’t start a new school year, with the most out-of-school children in the Sub-Saharn region (98 million).

Research has shown that children are the first to bear the brunt in today’s war-torn world and calamities heightened by skyrocketing inflation and extreme climate events.

Though the numbers have come down after the sharp COVID-19 (290 million), the current wars, inflation, and climate change have left aid organizations responsible for financing universal education without sufficient funds.

Throughout the globe, there are various factors causing children to drop out of school, with some countries being hit harder than others. Nigeria, Yemen, and Afghanistan, in particular, are grappling with a staggering increase in the number of out-of-school children, largely due to the following underlying reasons.

High Inflation – Low Economic Safety

For parents unsure, if they’ll have a next meal, sending children to school is the last thing on their minds. For example, over 80 million people in Nigeria live below the poverty line. This has led the country to one of the worst national education crises.

“I miss my teacher, friends, and all my schoolmates.”

10-years old Treasure, Nigeria (source: Frace 24 English)

Security threats, extreme poverty, and lack of public schools contribute to Nigeria’s education catastrophe. Like Treasure, 20 million Nigerian children are out of school, making them highly vulnerable to child labor, abuse, and underage marriages.

8-Year Long Civil War

In Yemen, out-of-school children are at increased risk of exploitation – being forced into civil war (child soldiers), early marriages, and child labor.

Mansour, a 16-years old boy, broke his spine in an accident at work in 2019 and has been unable to walk since. Once, Mansour went to school, studied, and regularly met his friends. Now, he is completely dependent on his mother for everything.

And Mansour is not alone.

Yemen’s war has forced 2 million children out of school, wrecking their future. Moreover, 3.7 million Yemen students consistently miss school due to the withholding of teachers’ salaries (almost 2-3rd of Yemen’s teachers have not received their salary in seven years).

Taliban Takeover

Since Taliba’s takeover in 2021, Afghan women over the age of 12 have been banned from school. With the new academic year starting in March, hundreds of thousands of teenage girls remain barred from classes.

Today, 80% of Afghan girls and young women (2.5 million) are banned from school. Out of which 30% have never even gained a primary education.

Despite repeated claims of reopening schools and universities for women, the Taliban (the de facto government) has failed to follow through. The group made similar claims during its previous rule from 1996 to 2001, but the girls were banned throughout the five-year rule.

“(the ban)takes away their ability to participate in their community in a way where they can ultimately have jobs, become doctors or teachers.”

Catherine Russell, Unicef (Source: al Jazeera) 

While the international community has made the right to women’s education the critical condition for aid negotiation, the Taliban is only giving empty promises in return.

Can Out of the School Children Crisis be Solved?

The out-of-school children problem is multifaceted and diverse. Almost every country’s fraction of students don’t go to school, but the numbers are significantly high in war-torn and under-developed countries. Even for students who are going to school, the quality of education and learning opportunities in such countries is vastly different.

According to a recent study by the world bank, these children are at the Irish of losing $17 trillion in lifetime earnings. And unless actions are taken, learning losses will continue to endanger the future of these children, nations, and the world.

Experts advise that providing school meals to students will encourage poverty-ridden families to send their children to school for food. But this will need funding from international governments and organizations.

Education- A Fundamental Right

The world has come a long way in making education a fundamental right. From only 1 out of every ten literate individuals two centuries ago to today’s 9 in 10 adults with essential reading and writing skills – we’ve made progress.

But, to tackle the current and looming world problems in the 21st century and beyond, we’ll need a strong team of educated people. It’s hard to imagine that even today, millions of children are growing up without the opportunity for education that we had. But the reality remains the same.

So, yes, we’ve come a long way, but a lot of work is still left to make education a fundamental right for every child globally.

Yemen has been experiencing an armed conflict and humanitarian crisis since 2015, with seven brutal years of pain, fear, bloodshed and death. This article provides an update on the humanitarian crisis in Yemen as of February 2023.

Background to Yemen’s Humanitarian Catastrophe

Yemen’s civil war began in 2014 when Houthi insurgents—Shiite rebels with links to Iran and a history of rising against the Sunni government—took control of Yemen’s capital and largest city, Sana’a, demanding lower fuel prices and a new government.

Two-thirds of the Yemini Population is in Need of Humanitarian Assistance

As of February 2023, two-thirds of the Yemeni population requires humanitarian assistance. The “Houthis” forces backed by Iran, the Saudi/UAE-led coalition, the internationally recognized Yemeni government, and UAE-backed forces, including the Southern Transitional Council (STC), have failed to spare Yemeni civilians grave human rights violations.

There has been a flagrant disregard for international humanitarian and human rights law protections. Thus, the war has resulted in continuous incidents of abuse that have killed and injured thousands of civilians.

Nearly six million Yemenis are displaced from their homes since the beginning of the war, including 4.3 million internally displaced inside Yemen.

So far, there are no signs of the war stopping soon.

Parties to the War Responsible For Grave Human Rights Violations

Parties to the conflict in Yemen continue to commit grave human rights violations. According to a recent report by Human Rights Watch, the clashes between forces have led to continuous unlawful and indiscriminate airstrikes against civilians.

Houthi forces have used banned antipersonnel landmines and fired artillery indiscriminately into populated areas. Moreover, Houthi forces have launched indiscriminate ballistic missiles into Saudi Arabia.

Read more: Children’s Rights in Yemen Are Teetering on the Edge of A Catastrophe.

Failed Truce in April 2022

An UN-mediated truce entered force on April 2nd 2022. The truce lasted six months, ending on October 2nd 2022. However, human rights violations continued, and the truce failed as parties broke the agreement with continued fighting and hostilities.

All parties to the conflict failed to protect innocent civilians’ lives. The truce in Yemen ended as both sides rejected a proposal presented by UN Special Envoy for Yemen to extend and expand the agreement.

However, on a brighter note, the truce brought noticeable tangible benefits to the Yemeni population. For example, access to humanitarian aid improved, and widespread economic opportunities became more readily available. Furthermore, there was a considerable decrease in violence and casualties across Yemen. A report by ACLED revealed the lowest number of reported political violence-related deaths in Yemen since January 2015. 

These noticeable and valuable improvements should not ignore that political violence continued in Yemen despite the truce. Worringly, 200 people died every month during the truce due to political violence.

20 Million Yeminis’ Face Food Insecurity

The humanitarian crisis hit a dangerously dire point in 2022 due to constant obstruction of aid from reaching civilians. Houthi forces and the Yemeni government continue unnecessarily imposing restrictions and regulations on humanitarian organizations and aid projects.

Moreover, enforced disappearances are a massive problem in Yemen, with little accountability or investigations. In addition, the economy’s collapse, the Covid-19 pandemic and Russia’s invasion of Ukraine have led to Yemen being one of the world’s most unsettling humanitarian disasters.

More than 20 million Yemenis are facing food insecurity and have little to no access to health care services. The war has resulted in deliberate unlawful attacks against civilian homes, hospitals, schools, and bridges. For years, these war crimes have continued with impunity.

Read more: Yemen: War crimes hidden behind rampant violations.

FSO Safer Threatened a Humanitarian and Environmental Catastrophe

The FSO Safer is a “ticking time bomb”, holding an estimated 1.14 million barrels of light crude oil. Since 2015, the Safer has been stranded off the coast of Yemen.

Yemen’s national oil company owns the FSO. Due to the Yemen war, all production and export operations related to FSO are suspended. However, millions of barrels of crude oil remain onboard.

The ongoing crisis in Yemen has made the Safer too dangerous to move. According to the UN, the Safer could explode or rupture anytime, threatening an environmental and humanitarian catastrophe. This dire situation could quickly become one of the worst oil spills in history, devastating Yemen and the environment. Luckily, a two-stage UN-coordinated plan to prevent the Safer from exploding or breaking apart was initiated in March 2022.

In September 2022, the UN stated it had raised sufficient funds to initiate a four-month-long operation to transfer oil from the Safer to a secure vessel. Following this first step, a second stage will involve installing a replacement vessel within 18 months. The rescue mission is estimated to cost up to $115 million for both stages.

However, despite these initiated plans,  recent efforts to rescue the Safer have been unsuccessful due to the region’s ongoing conflict.

Yemini Women’s and Girl’s Rights Under Threat

The Houthi rebels continue discriminating against girls and women and restricting their freedom and rights. There have been significant systematic violations of women’s and girls’ rights. The de facto law in Houthi-controlled areas requires women to travel with a mahram (a close male relative or their husband). In addition, evidence of written permission from their male guardian will also suffice.

Women’s access to healthcare services, particularly reproductive healthcare, have severely limited since the war began. Furthermore, women’s dress code, access to education and freedom of expression is severely controlled and limited by men.

Concluding Thoughts

The eight-year war in Yemen has caused immense suffering, and a recent UNDP report estimated that the number of those killed due to Yemen’s war could reach 1.3 million by 2030. Furthermore, the death toll from Yemen’s war is estimated to reach 377,000 by the end of 2021. To put matters into perspective, an estimated 70% of those killed will be children under the age of five years.

The evidence discussed in this article reveals alarming discoveries which must be addressed immediately. Mainly associated with girls’ and women’s rights, environmental threats, food insecurities and an increased number of civilians needing humanitarian assistance. Furthermore, an increasingly worsening economy, decimated public infrastructure, and a year-on-year decline in humanitarian funding have put Yemenis’ lives under direct threat.

The situation in Yemen is a complex protection crisis at its very core. Many Yemenis struggle to live in safety and dignity and enjoy basic fundamental rights or access to essential services. 

This worrying reality must be addressed and changed in 2023 with more focused attention on protecting and upholding human rights for everyone.