Pickups carrying the bodies of Houthi fighters occasionally travel through the streets of Sanaa.
asserted
Pickups → carry → Sanaa
Alongside them in the back, gunmen accompany the fallen fighters on their final journey to the cemetery.
asserted
gunmen → accompany → cemetery
A song known as “Our martyrs are our greats” echoes loudly from the moving vehicles, drawing the attention of passersby.
asserted
martyrs → know → passersby
At the cemetery, mourners solemnly pay their respects to the fallen fighters and show solidarity with their families.
asserted
mourners → pay → families
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Funerals of fighters have been a recurring sight in Yemen over the past few weeks.
asserted
Funerals → prepare → weeks
Earlier this month, the Yemeni government said its forces killed or wounded 1,540 Houthis in 24 hours.
asserted
forces → say → hours
Last week, the government said 16,100 Houthi operatives and commanders had been killed or wounded since October 5.
asserted
operatives → say → October
Houthis have also killed hundreds of pro-government troops over the past few weeks, with an October 19 missile attack on a security camp in Shabwa killing more than 70 government soldiers.
asserted
attack → kill → soldiers
While the families of the deceased fighters receive fleeting public tributes at cemeteries, their grief and loss endure long after the funerals.
asserted
grief → receive → funerals
For them, life has become more difficult, economic hardships have deepened and sorrow is a constant companion.
asserted
sorrow → become → them
“The martyrdom of my brother, Abdulaziz, on October 10 broke us and robbed us of peace of mind.
asserted
martyrdom → break → mind
We could smile to hide our pain, but our hearts are filled with bottomless grief,” Akram, a 23-year-old resident of Sanaa, told Al Jazeera.
uncertain
Akram → smile → Jazeera
Abdulaziz, 21, was killed in Dhubab, in southwestern Yemen, while fighting alongside the Houthi group, two months after being recruited, Akram said.
asserted
Akram → kill → group
Before Abdulaziz went to the front line, the two brothers worked in Sanaa as daily-wage workers in construction or agriculture.
asserted
brothers → go → construction
When they managed to get work, they pooled their earnings to cover the living expenses of their six-member family.
asserted
they → manage → family
That made the family’s financial difficulties “manageable”, said Akram.
asserted
Akram → make → ?
Today, he struggles without his brother and covering the family’s basic needs has become a harder task.
asserted
covering → struggle → needs
“I lost my pillar of strength, Abdulaziz.
asserted
I → lose → strength
His income, along with mine, used to cover water, electricity and food expenses.
asserted
income → use → expenses
Without him, I am like a bird with one wing, burdened by so many responsibilities,” said Akram.
asserted
Akram → burden → responsibilities
Over the past few days, petrol and diesel prices have risen by 10 percent in Houthi-controlled northwestern Yemen, adding to the cost of basic goods and increasing pressure on struggling families, such as Akram’s.
asserted
prices → rise → Akram
“When it comes to paying the fees for water, electricity, or buying groceries, it does not matter if your relative is a martyr or not.
asserted
relative → come → groceries
You have to pay or starve to death,” said Akram.
asserted
Akram → have → death
In recent months, Yemen has faced a major escalation in fighting between Saudi-backed government forces and the Iran-aligned Houthi group that controls parts of the country.
asserted
that → face → country
The latest escalation “threatens to be absolutely devastating” for food security, said the World Food Programme’s Assistant Executive Director for Programme Operations, Matthew Hollingworth, earlier this month.
asserted
Director → threaten → Operations
“We are looking at a hunger crisis that is going to grow as it persists,” Hollingworth added.
asserted
Hollingworth → look → crisis
The Houthis seized Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, in September 2014 and subsequently took control of much of northern and western Yemen.
asserted
Houthis → seize → Yemen
Since then, the conflict has remained unresolved.
asserted
conflict → remain → ?
Like many other deceased fighters’ families in Houthi-controlled areas, Houthi authorities gave Akram’s family a food basket, which included flour, cooking oil, rice and sugar.
asserted
which → control → flour
However, the supply of food or financial assistance is irregular, Sanaa-based Ali Yahia, a 55-year-old father of a deceased fighter, told Al Jazeera.
asserted
Yahia → base → Jazeera
“My son was killed four years ago on the Saudi-Yemen border when he was fighting for the Sanaa-based government.
asserted
he → kill → government
Since then, I have received food baskets at different times.
asserted
I → receive → times
Sometimes, I receive them twice a year or thrice a year, or four times a year,” he said.
asserted
he → receive → them
For Yahia, this support is insufficient, and he argues that “fair compensation” would be a monthly salary of $200 at least.
asserted
compensation → argue → 200
“This amount of money would help a family cover the basics each month,” he said.
asserted
he → help → basics
Yahia has two other sons who support him.
asserted
who → have → him
One is a delivery rider in Sanaa and the other works at a restaurant.
asserted
other → work → restaurant
“With their support, my living conditions have improved.
asserted
conditions → improve → support
But if a family depends on a fighter’s income, the death of the fighter sparks a living and psychological ordeal for the whole family,” he said.
asserted
he → depend → family
According to the World Food Programme, 18.3 million people across Yemen face severe food insecurity, while 2.2 million children under five suffer from acute malnutrition.
uncertain
children → accord → malnutrition
…and 18 more, not listed.
The Aporia
