Aden, Yemen—The Yemeni Network for Rights and Freedoms has released a critical and harrowing human rights report, revealing the documentation of approximately 36,179 violations and grave crimes committed against children across various Yemeni governorates. The network held the Houthi terrorist militia fully responsible for these acts, which occurred between January 2017 and September 8, 2026. Titled “Yemen’s Children: From Schools to Battlefronts,” the report paints a grim and heartbreaking picture of the situation for children in areas under militia control. It details a wide range of crimes, including killing, injury, abduction, enforced disappearance, torture, and rape, as well as displacement and the deliberate deprivation of rights to education, healthcare, food, and water.
Alarming figures regarding victims of shelling and forced conscription.
According to the details of the human rights report, monitoring teams documented the deaths of 5,495 children, including 712 infants. The report also noted that another 3,972 children were injured by sniper fire, indiscriminate shelling, landmines, and various remnants of war. Regarding individual violations, the network recorded 317 cases of abduction and enforced disappearance. It confirmed that 117 children were subjected to torture in Houthi prisons, with nine of them dying as a result of the severity of the torture. Additionally, 18 cases of psychological and physical torture and 53 cases of rape involving innocent children were documented.
Regarding military recruitment, the report stated that its teams documented the deaths of 9,728 child recruits—based on data announced by the militia and public funeral processions. Additionally, 12,730 child recruits were recorded as injured; their details were verified through hospital records across several governorates, including Sana’a, Al-Mahwit, Dhamar, Al-Hudaydah, Hajjah, Ibb, Taiz, Al-Bayda, and Al-Dhale’e. The network emphasized that the difficulty of accessing the field means the actual figures are likely much higher. It also pointed to international reports indicating that the number of child recruits has surpassed the 42,000 mark.
Catastrophic repercussions for education, displacement, and the labor market.
Regarding the humanitarian and living conditions resulting from the ongoing war, the conflict and its harsh circumstances have led to the displacement of 49,965 children. Consequently, they have been deprived of the most basic necessities—shelter, education, and care. In the education sector, the network estimates that approximately 4.5 million children are out of school, a situation caused by the destruction of infrastructure and the conversion of educational facilities into military barracks and centers for mobilization and training.
The dire economic deterioration has also forced more than four million children into the labor market to support their families. Furthermore, 37 child deaths due to severe hunger have been documented in Houthi-controlled areas in the last five months alone. The network concluded its report with an urgent call for the international community and UN organizations to take immediate action, urging them to exert maximum pressure to save Yemen’s children and protect them from ongoing exploitation and abuse.
