Rafeef, 10, walks past Houthi snipers every morning just to reach her school in Yemen

From the Newshound archive · first published 6 October 2026.

Ten-year-old Rafeef climbs past Houthi sniper positions every morning to reach her school in Taiz, south-western Yemen. The building sits on a frontline, with one side overlooking government-held territory and the other facing enemy lines. Her family fled Hudaydah nine years ago hoping to find safety, only to discover Taiz equally engulfed in conflict. Two years ago, shrapnel from a mortar blast punched through their front door while Rafeef and her brother were home alone.

Unicef estimates 3.2 million Yemeni children were already out of school prior to last month's escalation of the war.

Going to school is the one occasion Rafeef's parents permit her to leave the house — she wants to become a doctor and will not be deterred from attending.

Thousands more Yemenis are now fleeing across the Red Sea to escape the fighting, with survivors describing bodies left to be eaten by dogs.