A Candid Tribute: Yemenis Turned Legend into Reality and Continuity

NYN | Articles 

By Ali Wutfi

The Yemeni response—through missile strikes on the Zionist entity and naval blockades on its commercial routes—came after the aggression on the city of Hodeidah.

Blessed Yemen remains our guiding star, the symbol we lift our heads toward in times of defeat. It is our only tent in the midst of this sustained disgrace. Once again—and how many times?—words fail to do justice to the dignity of our Yemeni brothers, descendants of the great Queen Bilqis, in an age of regimes and peoples who grovel on their bellies to please the master in the Oval Office, whoever he may be. They do what they cannot bear, even going so far as to support the enemy of this nation and of humanity with everything they have—as he spills blood, shreds the bodies of Gaza’s children, and continues to torture and kill the starving, besieged souls wandering the ruins of the Gaza prison.

Then, by order, these same regimes become his soldiers—guarding the first line of defense—against anyone who dares to launch righteous fury through rockets and drones that shake his foundations, destroy the arteries of his industrial and economic lifelines, and drive settlers from one shelter to another. These regimes act as brokers, selling what remains of Palestine—wholesale or in installments.

How could I not vent my fury in words when I see, with deep shame, that a recent rally in Spain prayed and demonstrated for Gaza and Palestine, while these so-called “brethren”—those geographically closest—haven’t even mustered the courage to summon an ambassador, close an embassy, boycott a shopping center, or cut a tie… since the massacre began?

These true, pure Arabs—have exposed and proven the betrayal of this so-called “Ummah” with both its Arabs and Muslims. Despite their own calamities, and following the brutal aggression of “Operation Decisive Storm” which failed due to their resilience—despite hunger, resource scarcity, and criminal siege—they refused to let Gaza be slaughtered alone, from vein to vein.

They are the noblest among us—worthy of being called “The Chosen People of the Nation.” They support the oppressed, shoulder the weary, and act as a crutch for the broken. Every so often, they bring joy to the lips of thirsty children pleading for a drop of water—from a brother, or even a friend.

Oh, beloved Yemen, we feel emasculated when we see you rising above yourself—and above us. You turn your unhealed wounds and pain into missiles and drones in support of brethren who called for help—and you did not hesitate. You remain the shining mark in a history of surrender this nation has chosen for itself. You are not just Ansar Allah—you are the closest to God, the highest in rank, washing away some of the shame of submission and cowardice that has stained our faces.

Yet this nation is not barren—it can still give birth to true men, even while its rulers cling to their chairs at the cost of dignity, and its people drown in comfort and triviality. Your foreheads reach the edge of the cosmos in pride, while theirs bow in the swamp of humiliation and betrayal, ritually purifying themselves five times a day in a charade of piety—yet who is it they worship?

You are, without a doubt, the masters of the Arabs and true descendants of the proud Bilqis. Be cautious—because they will not allow your steadfastness to continue. You have exposed them, their lies, and their moral bankruptcy to the world and to humanity. While Gaza bleeds, they pledge their loyalty to ensure not a single settler or occupation soldier goes hungry or without a bottle of water or a piece of fruit.

Where does your strength, your determination, your endurance come from—after five years of bombardment, tons of missiles dropped on your heads by Arabs and foreigners alike? Even a statement of condemnation from the so-called “Arab chicken coop” was too much to ask.

And now, Yemen’s poet, the great Al-Baradouni, affirms what we already know:

“If they wrong us out of contempt, the lowest of lows is that they wrong us;
And if they boast of the triumph of the vile, then our defeat is a reluctant honor.
We are neither able to stop them, nor are they noble—so who is to blame?
Every coward becomes bold if you surrender, and the noblest of their nobles is a thief, their best a murderous criminal.”

How we rejoiced when the most powerful and oppressive force in history raised its hands in retreat, and its president confessed to your bravery—pulling back his fleets after a 40-day barbaric assault, alongside his Arab and foreign thugs.

Perhaps your strength lies in the legacy of those who built the Marib Dam, or the resilience of Sa’ada’s mountains and the plateaus of Najran. Blessed are those unbreakable arms.

Oh what joy for “Palestine II” to greet the suffering of original Palestine, as celebratory ululations accompany the arrival of your retaliatory visitor—avenging their wounds and agonies after this nation left them in hell, besieged by so-called “brothers” who carry the firewood.

They are the same ones who besieged Iraq, Syria, and mythical Yemen. Jerusalem gambles in vain on those who don’t even control the authority inside their bedrooms. Sometimes, I pity them—for the one who seated them on the throne also has the power to remove them. Other times, I wonder—perhaps they are crocodiles in human form, while the massacre of the century unfolds within earshot and eyesight.

Yet they are the first to donate eagerly to hurricane victims in “Marina” every year. They spend millions on building zoos in European capitals. Some suffer from megalomania, financial gluttony, and political schizophrenia—burning hundreds of millions on war, discord, or buying bankrupt sports clubs—just to imagine themselves sitting in the sixth chair at the U.N. Security Council.

Learn dignity from Yemen’s men—these are the high-minded, proud souls. They are the “Moment of Honor” in this slumbering nation, trapped in an endless winter. A nation like this deserves the regimes that rule it: herded by shepherds who speak their language, with obedience to the ruler packaged as “contentment is a treasure that never fades.”

Now I am certain—our people in Yemen, though few, are the real nation… and the rest? Its outlaws.

With all loyalty, we can only bow in reverence and lift our prayers that this steadfast Yemen remains proud, that its people recover, and that it lives on in dignity and peace.

— A Syrian Writer