Yemen, Despite War, Has Very Kind, Welcoming, Gentle People

When will their interminable war, begun in 2011, end?

The old town of Aden, Yemen is situated in the crater of an extinct volcano.

If I still lived in the UAE, I wouldn’t dare publish anything about the war in Yemen for fear of contradicting official talking points. It may seem like a small, far-away, extremely hostile country of little relevance, but actually in American terms, it stretches all the way from West Virginia to Massachusetts, with a population of 24.4 million people. 

A Canadian friend in Abu Dhabi who spent several years in Yemen in the early 21st century as a business consultant observed: “People see Yemen as a very hostile place. But I really found the people there to be very, very kind and very welcoming. They have a gentle sweetness.”