The Forgotten Wound in Yemen’s Bleeding Body 

Introduction: The Forgotten Wound in Yemen’s Bleeding Body

In the shadow of the worst humanitarian crisis the modern world has witnessed, Yemen is drowning in the details of a daily tragedy dominated by news of airstrikes, famine, and epidemics. Yet, behind the bold headlines, and within the corners of shattered homes and destitute displacement camps, lives a demographic paying the heaviest price for this futile war: Yemen’s children with disabilities.

These children are not merely victims of war; they are "double victims." They carry the burden of their physical or mental disability in one hand, and the burden of armed conflict and state collapse in the other. They have become the "most vulnerable of the vulnerable," trapped in a forgotten tragedy that has slipped—inadvertently or deliberately—from the world's conscience.

War: The Manufacturer of New Disabilities

The war in Yemen has not only exacerbated the suffering of those born with disabilities, but it has also transformed into a massive "machine" for producing new impairments and permanent deformities among children.

• Indiscriminate Shelling and Landmines: Thousands of Yemeni children have lost limbs or suffered paralysis due to airstrikes and indiscriminate shelling of residential neighborhoods. Most perilously, landmines and "fields of death" lie in wait on their paths to school or playgrounds. These weapons have created a new generation of amputees requiring lifelong care.

• Absence of Maternal Healthcare: The collapse of the health system has deprived pregnant women of essential care. This has spiked the rates of obstructed labor and children born with congenital deformities or cerebral palsy due to oxygen deprivation—conditions that were preventable under normal circumstances.

Collapse of the Support System: A Slow Death Sentence

Before the war, services for people with disabilities in Yemen were already scarce. Today, they have evaporated entirely, turning the lives of disabled children and their families into an unbearable hell:

1. Absence of Treatment and Rehabilitation: Most physiotherapy and rehabilitation centers have ceased operations due to bombing, lack of funding, or staff shortages. A child needing simple therapy to maintain mobility is now left to face joint stiffness and rapid physical deterioration.

2. Lack of Assistive Devices: Children with amputations face immense difficulty in obtaining prosthetics, wheelchairs, or even crutches due to the economic blockade and the challenges of importing medical supplies.

3. Malnutrition Compounding the Tragedy: Extreme poverty is intrinsically linked to severe malnutrition, which ravages children's already frail bodies. For a child with a disability, malnutrition means double the weakness, fatal bedsores, and a rapid collapse of the immune system.

Social Isolation and Psychological Terror

The suffering of these children is not limited to the physical realm; it extends to deep psychological wounds:

• The Inability to Escape: Imagine the terror of a blind child hearing the sounds of bombing but not knowing which way to run, or a paralyzed child unable to move as walls crumble around them. This terror leaves indelible psychological scars.

• Denial of Education: The war has destroyed schools and halted special education classes. The disabled child has become a prisoner in their own home, denied the right to learn and socially integrate, reinforcing feelings of inferiority and isolation.

• Burden on Exhausted Families: In the face of abject poverty, caring for a disabled child becomes a challenge that exceeds the capacity of families barely able to secure their daily bread. In some tragic cases, despair leads to unintentional neglect.

Conclusion: A Call to Human Conscience

The suffering of the disabled child in Yemen is not just a passing news story; it is a stain on the conscience of humanity and the silent international community.

What is required today is not only an end to the war but an urgent, targeted humanitarian response for this specific group. Safe corridors must be provided for medical rehabilitation teams, support must be funneled to prosthetic centers, and psychological and social support must be ensured for these children and their families.

Every day that passes without intervention means another Yemeni child loses a limb, loses hope, or loses their life in total silence. These children did not choose the war, nor did they choose their disability, yet they are paying the ultimate price for both.