Yemen’s child soldiers driven to battle by poverty and ongoing war
Child soldiers in Yemen are fighting with both government-aligned and Houthi forces as poverty and conflict push minors onto battlefields.
Ongoing conflict in Yemen has revived the use of child soldiers, with the UN documenting 564 recruitment cases from 2021-2023, split between Houthi forces and government-aligned groups. Children as young as eight are employed in combat and support roles such as checkpoint guards and drivers. Economic hardship, described by the SAM Organisation for Rights and Liberties and the Yemeni Network for Rights and Freedom, fuels recruitment, as families accept modest stipends, food, or the lure of weapons.
Some minors are enticed by promises of training and monthly pay, while others, like 17-year-old Ibrahim, join local resistance to retake villages. Government representatives assert a strict prohibition on child enlistment but admit minors are encountered on the front lines, and captured youths are treated as children under the law. The phenomenon reflects a mix of poverty, ideological pressure, and social dynamics that keep children in the conflict.
Why it matters
It shows how war and poverty force children into combat, worsening Yemen's humanitarian crisis.
How this story developed
- Sep 11 Renewed Yemen fighting forces over 46,000 people from their homes
- Sep 25 The UAE has not confirmed an official ban despite the cancellation of Iranian flights to Dubai.
- Sep 25 Defense Secretary Pete Hegseth called on active-duty personnel and eligible relatives to register and request ballots ahead of the upcoming midterm elections.
- Sep 27 Government forces launched intensified air and ground attacks in Taiz province.
- Sep 27 France announced a military mission to Saudi Arabia.
- Oct 2 The United States granted an exemption permitting Iraqi Airways to resume pilgrim flights to Iran.
- Oct 2 Saudi Arabia has moved from planning to actively preparing a large‑scale offensive to retake the Bab el‑Mandeb strait.
- Oct 3 TPLF forces are withdrawing from Mekelle as federal troops advance toward the capital.
- Oct 3 A witness observed a large plume of fire and smoke near an Aramco facility in Riyadh on Saturday, with authorities yet to confirm the incident.
- Oct 3 Saudi jets launched 26 strikes on Sanaa following the fire at the Aramco site.
- Oct 4 Speaker Mike Johnson ended the House’s final day of session, halting the impeachment vote on Defense Secretary Hegseth.
- Oct 4 Houthi spokesperson announced that missiles and drones struck Aramco facilities in Riyadh and eastern Khurais, causing large fires.
- Oct 5 Federal troops and pro‑government militias entered Mekelle following the TPLF’s announced withdrawal.
- Oct 5 Yemeni government forces announced capture of positions near Bab al‑Mandab and the coalition deployed about 100 combat aircraft.
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