The Sunni / Shi'ite conflict has increased
Yemen has been undergoing a major civil war over the past number of years. Cities are continuing to be bombed and the infrastructure is collapsing. The media reports that over 10,000 people have been killed with three million displaced from their homes. There is severe famine in parts of the country. Its few oil fields are not producing. Cholera is epidemic, the currency is collapsing, prices are soaring, and many in the public sector haven’t been paid in over a year. There is also fear that school age boys will be recruited to fight for the Houthis who control large areas of the country.
Please pray for the peace and the rebuilding of Yemen in these seven key areas:
OH GOD, give hope to the people of Yemen!
Psalm 7:9-10
O righteous God,
Who searched minds and hearts,
bring to an end the violence of the wicked
and make the righteous secure.
My shield is God Most High,
who saves the upright in heart.
Yemen is one of the oldest inhabited areas of the world. The capital city of Sanaa is known as the city founded by Shem, the son of Noah. Yemen was once part of the Kingdom of Sheba whose queen brought rare and costly gifts to King Solomon.
When Islam was born in the seventh century, Yemen was one of the first countries to follow the new religion and is home to two of the oldest mosques in the world.
For a number of years, Yemen was divided. South Yemen was the world’s only Arab Marxist state. North Yemen was more traditional and tribal. The country was united in 1990 but suffered a brief civil war in 1994. The more open South was soundly defeated and the country was reunited.
Yemen is by far the poorest country in the Arab World today. It has always struggled with poverty and underdevelopment, but the current civil war has devastated the country, killing over 10,000 people and displacing three million from their homes. The good news is that many are coming to faith in Christ. Along with Saudi Arabia, there are more believers in Yemen than in any other country in the Arabian Peninsula. This is an amazing work of God since Yemen and Saudi Arabia are two of the most Islamic countries in the world today.