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قارئ المقال
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This story was written with support from IJNet Arabic’s Mentoring Center for Media Startups
Written by: Ibrahim Al-Munifi
Translated by: Yasser Mohammed
Civilians in Yemen have suffered a lot due to the current conflict. Although each tragic story in Yemen has a victim who is still suffering, The events that befallen Al-Dhubaibi family are a full blown disaster
Al-Dhubaibi family’s story is especially disturbing since there are multiple victims. One family member suffered until he died, while another sustained a permanent injury, not mentioning the remaining family members who suffered mentally and emotionally
?Who are Al-Dhubaibi Family
Mansur Al-Dhubaibi hails from Raymah governorate originally, but he was living in Saref area, east of Sana’a, the capital city of Yemen when the disaster happened
Ali and his wife separated after having two children, a boy named Sa’d who was eight years old back then and a girl name Elham who was six years old
Mansur blames the conflict and the economic hardships brought on by the conflict as the reason behind separating from his wife
He got married again to another woman and had two more children, five year old Amira and Zaghir, 3 years old. He owned a car accessories shop in addition to working for a daily wage in other jobs. At the time, Mansur’s economic condition was good, as he put it. He used to own a plot of land in Sana’a city, a valuable fixed asset in a country like Yemen
On a beautiful Tuesday evening, in February of 2016, three airstrikes were launched against the Community College in Sana’a. The attack resulted in human losses and material ones too. Three laboratory’s in the College were destroyed, the cost of which was estimated at three million dollars by the College’s dean. Mansur was inside a car along with his wife, his son Sa’d and his daughter Elham, the two children were on the back of a pickup truck, heading for home which is located behind Sana’a Community College when he and his family were subjected to grave danger
Suddenly there was a violent airstrike, sending windows flying away while the passersby were screaming “ in the street, I almost lost control of the car because it shook violently after the airstrike,” said Mansur
“I stopped the car and brought in my children inside it, during that, another airstrike, a more violent one, which sent us flying away for several meters, following that, we all passed out,” added Mansur
Although passersby were shocked by the sight of Mansur’s family, especially his bloodied children with shrapnel penetrating their small bodies, they rushed Mansur and his family to the hospital
The only crime that Mansur’s family committed was living near the Community College in which one of the warring parties, thought the leaders of the other warring party were having a meeting in that College, which later turned out to be not true
When it Rains it Pours
Since that day, Al-Dhubaibi’s family troubles began and never ended
The father, was severely injured in his head and his right leg, he was in the hospital receiving treatment for two months. The Kids had it much worse
The little boy, Sa’d, took a shrapnel to the eye, and lost his sight in that eye completely. What is worse, is that the treating doctor had written a partially wrong report. Sa’d’s retina was not detached, but the right eye was not cleaned properly according to medical reports from hospitals in Egypt and India
Mansur had to take his son for treatment in India back in 2019, after selling his plot of land and the shop he used to own, all were for nothing. The optic nerve in his right eye had already been damaged, and Sa’d lost sight in his right eye
What is even more painful, is what happened to Elham, the 6 year old child who got kidney failure and died only after two sessions of dialysis
A few months after Mansur and his family returned from India, his wife got more ill. She has been having pains for more than three years. When the pain was too much to ignore, Mansur took his wife to the hospital and both of them were shocked to hear the diagnosis. Mansur’s wife had a malignant tumor in her breast
Mansour put together what was left of his money and what glimmer of hope he had for the treatment of his wife and son, borrowed money from the neighbors, and so did his wife, and all of them headed for Egypt, but to no avail. His wife was not cured, she died of cancer a few months after they returned
Now, Mansur is left with three children and he does not know what to do
Caring for three Children While Working Fulltime
Mansur almost broke down with tears while talking about his children and how they became motherless
Mansur almost breakdown while talking about his children and how they became motherless
“After I sold everything I had and borrowed a lot of money, I am fighting to provide food for my three children,” said Mansur
Before leaving for work, now Mansur has to leave his children with the neighbors or with distant relatives
Sa’d is now nearly fifteen years old and studying in the fourth grade at Al-Noor Center for the Visually Impaired in Sana’a. Amira is five years old now and Zaghir is three years old
At the end of the interview we asked Mansur if he had any final thoughts: “My life was ruined and my dreams shattered, but I think of my young children who have lost their mother’s love
Mansur wants to get married again so that his children can have someone to take care of them inside their home without him having to put them with the neighbors when he wants to leave for work
In this series, Stories Behind the War, we were able to reach a few of the conflict’s victims, but there are many others who are still suffering in silence due to negligence from the competent authorities.