Yemen Is Running Out Of Gas

Washington Post: Yemen grinds to a halt for lack of gas

SANAA, Yemen — Hamoud al-Harazi’s brush with death happened while he was trying to buy gasoline this week. On his fifth day waiting at a filling station in Yemen’s capital, a fight erupted when armed men in a Toyota pickup tried to cut in at the front of the mile-long line.

They began trading gunfire with other frustrated motorists, prompting Harazi to run for his life, he said.

“It’s come to the point that we in Yemen may die just trying to get gas,” said Harazi, a minibus driver who lives in Sanaa.

Intense fighting, involving Shiite rebels and a Saudi-led military force, is starving Yemen of gasoline, leaving residents unable to drive to supermarkets or shuttle wounded people to hospitals. Citizens also are increasingly unable to flee bombing raids that have killed scores of civilians.

WNU Editor: As the war grinds on these shortages will only get worse. But shortages of gas is a major weakness for the Houthis rebels .... and by cutting off their ability to travel the Saudis and their allies have effectively limited the rebels scope of military operations. It should also be noted that food shortages are also occurring, and in a country that is dependent on imports for even the basics .... this has the potential of becoming catastrophic.