Ice Cream Shop in Sanaa: A Fragile Haven Amid War Threats

Yasser's ice cream shop, a modest refuge in the heart of Sanaa, stands as a microcosm of the city's precarious existence. The three refrigerators, humming with frozen treats, are more than just appliances—they are lifelines for the 45-year-old and his family of five. In a city where power outages are common and unemployment looms large, his shop is a rare source of stability. Yet even this fragile equilibrium now feels threatened by the Houthi rebels' decision to entangle Yemen in the escalating war between Iran and Israel. "The moment Israel begins its military response to the Houthis, we will lose the little comfort we have today," Yasser said, his voice tinged with resignation. For him, the stakes are not abstract: rising prices, fuel shortages, and the specter of air strikes could erase the small gains his family has managed to scrape together. The Houthi rebels, who have controlled Sanaa since 2014, launched their first direct strike against Israel on March 28, a move that has sent shockwaves through a population already weary from years of conflict. Though the attacks have been limited and intercepted, the psychological toll is immediate. For civilians, the fear is not just of bombs—it's of a future where scarcity and violence become the norm.

The city's streets, once bustling with the hum of daily life, now echo with whispered fears. Ammar Ahmed, a 28-year-old taxi driver, recalls the devastation of previous Israeli air strikes with visceral clarity. "The horror," he said, "has never left me." His memories are etched into the fabric of his life: the deafening explosions, the acrid smell of burning buildings, the sudden disappearance of neighbors who never returned. Now, with the Houthis drawing Israel into a new front, Ammar's worst fears are rekindling. He has begun contemplating the unthinkable—relocating his wife and four children to safer ground. "We are exposed, unprotected," he said, his hands gripping the steering wheel of his taxi as if it were a lifeline. Central Sanaa, he believes, is particularly vulnerable. The city's infrastructure, concentrated in its core, houses key state institutions that could become targets in the coming weeks. "The villages could be safer," he admitted, though the thought of leaving his home feels like surrender. For Ammar, the Houthi involvement in the war is not a political statement—it's a death sentence for his family.

Meanwhile, the economic anxieties of Sanaa's residents are compounding their fears. Abdulrahman, a property owner with a two-storey building divided into apartments, now faces a dilemma that transcends rent collection. "I prefer an ordinary citizen as a tenant rather than a well-known official," he said, his words revealing the deepening mistrust in a city where survival is a daily gamble. Past Israeli and U.S. strikes have left scars on residential areas, with Houthi members often targeted in their homes. Senior rebels, it is believed, now take extreme precautions, moving frequently to avoid detection. For Abdulrahman, this means scrutinizing every potential tenant. "Who they are, what their connections are—these are questions I can't afford to ignore," he said. The prospect of his building becoming a casualty of war is not just a financial risk—it's a moral one. If the Houthi leadership is indeed hiding in plain sight, then every apartment, every corridor, every window could be a potential death trap. For ordinary Yemenis like Abdulrahman, the war has transformed their homes from places of refuge into potential battlegrounds.

The United Nations has warned that the growing regional conflict threatens to plunge Yemen into an even deeper humanitarian crisis. With food prices already soaring and fuel shortages paralyzing daily life, the prospect of renewed air strikes could push the country to the brink. For Yasser, Ammar, and Abdulrahman, the war is no longer a distant specter—it's a reality that has already begun to reshape their lives. The Houthi rebels' decision to align with Iran may have been a calculated move, but for the civilians of Sanaa, the consequences are anything but strategic. As Israel prepares for retaliation and the world watches, the people of Yemen are left to grapple with a future that feels increasingly out of their hands.

The air in Sanaa grows heavier with each passing day as fears of Israeli airstrikes intensify. Abdulrahman, a local resident, voiced the chilling reality faced by civilians: 'If Israeli intelligence confirms the existence of a particular wanted individual in a specific place, they would hit the place regardless of the number of civilians that may be killed. This is nerve-wracking.' His words echo the anxiety gripping the city since August, when Israeli forces assassinated Houthi Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi in a targeted strike that also claimed the lives of several ministers. Then came the devastating September attacks, which left 35 people dead and scores more injured, including women and children. The pattern is clear—precision strikes, no warnings, and a disregard for civilian lives that has left communities on edge.

Despite the terror, Houthi supporters remain resolute. Mohammed Ali, a 26-year-old university graduate in Sanaa, told Al Jazeera that the US and Israel's 'might and callousness' is evident, but he refuses to waver. 'I know that the US-Israel warplanes can strike anywhere and anytime. They can intimidate people and rob us of peace. However, that will not be an effective recipe for subjugating us,' he said, his voice steady despite the weight of a decade-long war. Yemen's conflict, which has pitted the Houthis against the internationally recognized government, has left its people battered but unbroken. 'We have endured a decade of war, and our resistance path will not be abandoned,' he added, his faith in the Houthi leadership unshaken.

Houthi movement chief Abdel-Malik al-Houthi made his stance explicit in a recent speech, declaring that remaining on the sidelines was no longer an option. 'The Zionist plan targets all of us, and the enemies talk about it every day. The enemies say that they are seeking to change the Middle East. …We will not stand idly by until the enemies achieve what they seek,' he warned, framing the conflict as a battle for regional survival. His words have galvanized supporters, but they have also raised alarms among economists and analysts who foresee dire consequences if Yemen becomes a new front in the escalating regional war.

Wafiq Saleh, a Yemeni economic researcher, painted a grim picture of what could happen. 'Yemenis are paying a heavy price for recurring military battles and operations in the country,' he said, warning that the Houthi's entry into the Iran-Israel conflict would be a 'painful blow' to the already fragile economy. Saleh highlighted the strategic vulnerability of the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, a critical shipping lane that connects the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden. 'The targeting of Houthi-controlled Hodeidah ports will disrupt the movement of goods and delay the delivery of humanitarian aid,' he said, emphasizing that any escalation would paralyze maritime trade and deepen the humanitarian crisis. With the strait already a flashpoint, the risk of turning it into a military battleground is a nightmare scenario for Yemen's economy and global trade.

The economic toll is not just theoretical. Saleh warned that rising military tensions would drive up prices for essential imports, including food, fuel, and medicine, as shipping and insurance costs spiral. The fishing industry, which supports approximately 500,000 Yemenis, would also suffer. 'Any military tensions in the sea off Yemen will also paralyse the fishing sector,' he said, underscoring the ripple effects of conflict on livelihoods. For ordinary Yemenis like Yasser, the stakes are personal. Every night, he watches the news, his worries growing with each Houthi operation against Israel. 'We are not prepared to cope with the consequences of joining this war. We are already exhausted by our own conflicts,' he said, his voice laced with exhaustion and fear. As the region teeters on the edge of a new war, Yemen's people find themselves caught between the fires of old battles and the looming threat of new ones.