Burning rubbish chokes besieged Yemeni city of Taiz

Taiz, Yemen — Black smoke from burning rubbish envelops the Usaifira area north of the Yemeni city of Taiz, while foul odours fill the air in surrounding residential neighbourhoods. Along a waterway known as the al-Saeed stream, bags of uncollected household waste pile up – a scene that has become part of daily life for residents.

They find themselves trapped between mounds of rubbish and smoke, in a crisis that not only reflects a breakdown in public services but poses a direct threat to their health and environmental safety. Sanitation workers in Taiz say that snipers have been deployed in the vicinity of the landfill, and that staff have faced gunfire more than once while trying to reach the site to empty their trucks, preventing waste disposal operations.

The disruption comes as the city suffers from an acute shortage of fuel, which has further hampered waste collection. As a result, rubbish has accumulated on streets and in storm drains, prompting desperate residents to set the waste on fire.