A fuel shortage is blighting life in the swathes of Yemen controlled by Houthi rebels, cutting electricity supplies, halting water pumps and stranding people in need of medical care.
Energy scarcity is nothing new in a country ravaged by years of conflict, but queues at the pumps have been getting longer by the day since mid-June.
"What's happening is an injustice," said Sanaa resident Hames Al Tawil as he waited in a snaking line of vehicles that reached the gates of the presidential palace four kilometres away.
Cars and vans parked three abreast stretched through the summer heat as far as the eye could see.
"At least have mercy on the people who've been waiting in this queue for three days," Mr Al Tawil said through the rusted doorframe of his pickup truck.
Yemen is already at breaking point, facing what the United Nations calls the world's worst humanitarian crisis after more than five years of civil war.
The war, which has claimed tens of thousands of lives, pits the government against the Iran-allied Houthis, who in 2014 seized the capital Sanaa and much of the country's north.
The government and the Saudi-led military coalition backing it have accused the Houthis of causing fuel shortages to boost their case for the lifting of the coalition's naval and air blockade, imposed to prevent the smuggling of weapons to the rebels.
The Houthis accuse coalition forces of obstructing fuel shipments to hamstring them economically. At the same time, the rebels have been barring fuel convoys from government-held areas from entering their territory, claiming the products are of substandard quality and do not meet safety guidelines, according to independent Yemeni energy sector sources.
A similar fuel crisis last year prompted the aid group Oxfam to accuse warring parties in Yemen of "using the economy as a weapon of war".
Oxfam's Yemen director Muhsin Siddiquey warned last month of dire consequences if the fuel crisis persists.
Many Yemenis rely on groundwater extracted with pumps, while millions displaced by fighting and living in camps survive on water brought in by diesel-powered trucks.
"A protracted fuel shortage could put millions at risk of both contracting coronavirus and water-borne diseases like cholera because fuel is essential for the supply of clean water in Yemen," Mr Siddiquey said.
Shortages have also affected hospital operations, halted transport services and sent prices of essential goods soaring.
One litre of petrol now sells for 1,200 riyals (about Dh7.50) on the black market – three times the price before the current shortages.
The Houthi-controlled Yemen Petroleum Company last month warned that its gasoline and diesel stockpiles were being depleted.
It charged that the coalition had for more than 90 days been preventing 15 tankers delivering 420,000 tonnes of petrol and diesel to the south-western port of Hodeidah.
The coalition has been inspecting ships bound for Hodeidah, Yemen's main import hub, to block arms deliveries to the Houthis.
"We're hoping that a resolution is found very quickly because the impact on the population is devastating," the UN humanitarian co-ordinator in Yemen Lise Grande told AFP.
"Fuel that's needed to keep hospitals functioning and water plants functioning and irrigation systems functioning ... is being held up in ships."
She said the country's economic situation "looks scarily similar to what we saw when the country was on the brink of famine 18 months ago".
The director of the Al Thawra public hospital in Sanaa said shortages had had a "direct effect" on the facility, which no longer has a regular power supply.
"Due to the lack of fuel, the doctors and nurses cannot easily get to the hospital for their shifts," said Abdallatif Abu Taleb, adding that dialysis treatment and intensive care operations were particularly vulnerable.
In Hodeidah, health centre worker Fatima said she had been queueing at the pumps for two days in temperatures of 40°C to fill up.
"I left my car in the queue overnight," she said, adding that food prices had surged due to higher transportation costs.
Bus driver Hani Mohammed, who plies the route between Hodeidah and the capital Sanaa, suspended his service for a fortnight before resuming.
But the fuel shortage has forced him to double his fares.
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Ferrari 12Cilindri specs
Engine: naturally aspirated 6.5-liter V12
Power: 819hp
Torque: 678Nm at 7,250rpm
Price: From Dh1,700,000
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The five pillars of Islam
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Benefits of first-time home buyers' scheme
- Priority access to new homes from participating developers
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- Mortgages with better interest rates, faster approval times and reduced fees
- DLD registration fee can be paid through banks or credit cards at zero interest rates
Tearful appearance
Chancellor Rachel Reeves set markets on edge as she appeared visibly distraught in parliament on Wednesday.
Legislative setbacks for the government have blown a new hole in the budgetary calculations at a time when the deficit is stubbornly large and the economy is struggling to grow.
She appeared with Keir Starmer on Thursday and the pair embraced, but he had failed to give her his backing as she cried a day earlier.
A spokesman said her upset demeanour was due to a personal matter.
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Where can I submit a sample?
Volunteers can now submit DNA samples at a number of centres across Abu Dhabi. The programme is open to all ages.
Collection centres in Abu Dhabi include:
- Abu Dhabi National Exhibition Centre (ADNEC)
- Biogenix Labs in Masdar City
- Al Towayya in Al Ain
- NMC Royal Hospital in Khalifa City
- Bareen International Hospital
- NMC Specialty Hospital, Al Ain
- NMC Royal Medical Centre - Abu Dhabi
- NMC Royal Women’s Hospital.
Labour dispute
The insured employee may still file an ILOE claim even if a labour dispute is ongoing post termination, but the insurer may suspend or reject payment, until the courts resolve the dispute, especially if the reason for termination is contested. The outcome of the labour court proceedings can directly affect eligibility.
- Abdullah Ishnaneh, Partner, BSA Law
ELIO
Starring: Yonas Kibreab, Zoe Saldana, Brad Garrett
Directors: Madeline Sharafian, Domee Shi, Adrian Molina
Rating: 4/5
What is a black hole?
1. Black holes are objects whose gravity is so strong not even light can escape their pull
2. They can be created when massive stars collapse under their own weight
3. Large black holes can also be formed when smaller ones collide and merge
4. The biggest black holes lurk at the centre of many galaxies, including our own
5. Astronomers believe that when the universe was very young, black holes affected how galaxies formed
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BMW%20M4%20Competition
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Gothia Cup 2025
4,872 matches
1,942 teams
116 pitches
76 nations
26 UAE teams
15 Lebanese teams
2 Kuwaiti teams
LILO & STITCH
Starring: Sydney Elizebeth Agudong, Maia Kealoha, Chris Sanders
Director: Dean Fleischer Camp
Rating: 4.5/5
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
The Old Slave and the Mastiff
Patrick Chamoiseau
Translated from the French and Creole by Linda Coverdale
UAE currency: the story behind the money in your pockets
More from Rashmee Roshan Lall
Cases of coronavirus in the GCC as of March 15
Saudi Arabia – 103 infected, 0 dead, 1 recovered
UAE – 86 infected, 0 dead, 23 recovered
Bahrain – 210 infected, 0 dead, 44 recovered
Kuwait – 104 infected, 0 dead, 5 recovered
Qatar – 337 infected, 0 dead, 4 recovered
Oman – 19 infected, 0 dead, 9 recovered
The%20specs
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Champions parade (UAE timings)
7pm Gates open
8pm Deansgate stage showing starts
9pm Parade starts at Manchester Cathedral
9.45pm Parade ends at Peter Street
10pm City players on stage
11pm event ends
The biog
Hobbies: Writing and running
Favourite sport: beach volleyball
Favourite holiday destinations: Turkey and Puerto Rico
The specs
- Engine: 3.9-litre twin-turbo V8
- Power: 640hp
- Torque: 760nm
- On sale: 2026
- Price: Not announced yet
The biog
Family: He is the youngest of five brothers, of whom two are dentists.
Celebrities he worked on: Fabio Canavaro, Lojain Omran, RedOne, Saber Al Rabai.
Where he works: Liberty Dental Clinic
match info
Maratha Arabians 138-2
C Lynn 91*, A Lyth 20, B Laughlin 1-15
Team Abu Dhabi 114-3
L Wright 40*, L Malinga 0-13, M McClenaghan 1-17
Maratha Arabians won by 24 runs
MATCH INFO
Asian Champions League, last 16, first leg:
Al Ain 2 Al Duhail 4
Second leg:
Tuesday, Abdullah bin Khalifa Stadium, Doha. Kick off 7.30pm
England squad
Goalkeepers: Jordan Pickford, Nick Pope, Aaron Ramsdale
Defenders: Trent Alexander-Arnold, Conor Coady, Marc Guehi, Reece James, Harry Maguire, Tyrone Mings, Luke Shaw, John Stones, Ben White
Midfielders: Jude Bellingham, Conor Gallagher, Mason Mount, Jordan Henderson, Declan Rice, James Ward-Prowse
Forwards: Tammy Abraham, Phil Foden, Jack Grealish, Harry Kane, Bukayo Saka, Emile Smith Rowe, Raheem Sterling
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Tips to keep your car cool
- Place a sun reflector in your windshield when not driving
- Park in shaded or covered areas
- Add tint to windows
- Wrap your car to change the exterior colour
- Pick light interiors - choose colours such as beige and cream for seats and dashboard furniture
- Avoid leather interiors as these absorb more heat
Killing of Qassem Suleimani
Two-step truce
The UN-brokered ceasefire deal for Hodeidah will be implemented in two stages, with the first to be completed before the New Year begins, according to the Arab Coalition supporting the Yemeni government.
By midnight on December 31, the Houthi rebels will have to withdraw from the ports of Hodeidah, Ras Issa and Al Saqef, coalition officials told The National.
The second stage will be the complete withdrawal of all pro-government forces and rebels from Hodeidah city, to be completed by midnight on January 7.
The process is to be overseen by a Redeployment Co-ordination Committee (RCC) comprising UN monitors and representatives of the government and the rebels.
The agreement also calls the deployment of UN-supervised neutral forces in the city and the establishment of humanitarian corridors to ensure distribution of aid across the country.
From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
The five pillars of Islam
1. Fasting
2. Prayer
3. Hajj
4. Shahada
5. Zakat
