Pray for the Northern Yemeni

It is hard to think of a more desperate people than the Northern Yemeni people of Yemen. A population of over 13 million, speaking Sanaani Arabic, they are Shia Muslims and one of the largest populations in the world with no known Christian witness. Christianity arrived in Yemen in the 4th century, but Islam quickly dominated.

If you look up a list of unengaged Muslim people groups (people groups with no known efforts to make disciples among them) different groups from Yemen appear repeatedly, with the Northern Yemeni being the largest.

Conflict has been ongoing in this region since the Arab Spring in 2011 but Yemen was already one of the poorest nations in the Middle East before that. A decade of brutal war has devastated the economy and poverty here is a way of life. Malnutrition is widespread.

Millions rely on foreign aid to survive but Covid-19 has caused a drop in aid budgets by foreign governments focused on their own economies. The ongoing conflict continuallydisrupts the supply of essential food and fuel that does arrive. Most food must be imported but the people of north Yemen cannot afford to buy it, or the medical care they need to treat the illnesses caused by malnutrition. It is a vicious cycle. Unless the conflict ends, there appears to be no hope for any improvement. It has been called the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

How to Pray

• Pray for Northern Yemeni women. Their culture is restrictive for women, with arranged marriages and strict gender segregation, giving women even fewer opportunities. Women marry young and bear children who are likely to suffer from malnutrition and illness with little access to healthcare.(Numbers 6:24-26)
• Pray for peace in Yemen. For the conflict to end and the nation to be restored. (Matthew 5:9)
• Pray for God to make a way for His gospel to be shared in North Yemen. (Isaiah 65:1)

Learn more about Yemen and get prayer ideas at pray4yemen.com