Sana'a, The Roller Coaster (1st Day)

Sana'a my my weakness point. Sana'a is not all Yemen but Sana'a is my hometown. It's very personal when it's witnessing fighting & horror. I get paralyzed when things go bad there, just like how things were yesterday. I couldn't think, type and blog. I spent all the day calling my family in Sana'a. It's tough to convince them that I share your horror too, even if I am far away. Because they are kind, they let it go. Still, I know that it's unbelievable and inconceivable: how can you be far away and taste what we are enduring here?

It's terrible. Wars are there to dehumanise us. We start to see each other with less and less empathy. It takes time to comprehend that & try to find a way to deal with it. That's why I couldn't blog yesterday.

Even though the situation is changing rapidly in Sana'a, here is a brief recap of what has taken place so far:

#Houthi fighters surround #Yemen's prime minister's palace in Sanaa http://t.co/BwWoUvDek6
— AJE News (@AJENews) January 20, 2015

W/ Houthis taking over forcefully,it's not tht Yemen is a failed state,it's that Saleh remains a highly influential man backing the Houthis.
— Afrah Nasser (@Afrahnasser) January 19, 2015

At least two killed, 14 injured in #Yemen clashes - http://t.co/NpN2tBkJ8Z pic.twitter.com/OjYvUlksxy
— Al Arabiya English (@AlArabiya_Eng) January 19, 2015

Huge personal and artillery deployment in Sanaa streets. It seems the situation is escalating further. #Yemen pic.twitter.com/SD11035ycO
— Yemen Updates (@yemen_updates) January 19, 2015

Stomach-turning 2 c Yemen in neither peace, nor a civil war.It's a battle field for several proxy wars & innocent civilians hv 2 pay price.
— Afrah Nasser (@Afrahnasser) January 19, 2015

War dealers in Yemen flourish with this deadly clashes.What Yemeni people need is a real war against all these dealers - a war against wars!
— Afrah Nasser (@Afrahnasser) January 19, 2015

Fierce clashes near presidential palace in Yemen: http://t.co/U2XmgeHbre via @YouTube
— Afrah Nasser (@Afrahnasser) January 19, 2015

Anyone want to rethink amnesty for ex #Yemen Pres Saleh? He continues to play shadowy role. http://t.co/xA5NU12S1s pic.twitter.com/6gJI83YL59
— Kenneth Roth (@KenRoth) January 20, 2015

Eight killed in this morning's confrontations: 4 citizens, 3 #houthis &2 presidential guards. 31 injured because of stray bullets #yemen
— Nadia Sakkaf (@NadiaSakkaf) January 19, 2015

Remnants of yesterday's fighting in #Sanaa - at one entry point for 3rd battalion #yemen pic.twitter.com/jLiyfEXxyA
— Yara Bayoumy (@yarabayoumy) January 20, 2015