LMilitary blockades and sieges have since ancient times conveyed violent images of deprivation, famine and certain death. The inhabitants of Sarajevo can testify to this, having suffered one of the longest contemporary sieges by Serbian forces between April 1992 and February 1996, with the death of at least 12,000 civilians. Although regulated by international humanitarian law, which has been trying since the end of the 19th centurye century of humanizing war without preventing it, these two often complementary tactics remain relevant and still create intentional humanitarian crises where civilians pay a heavy price.
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The blockade of Yemen in 2015 and the siege of Mariupol in 2022 are a recent illustration of the utopian nature of this international legislation, even if it still proves necessary in many conflicts. The Gaza Strip, for its part, has the particularity of being subject to a blockade since 2007, followed by a still active siege that began in October 2023, a deadly double whammy for civilians whom the law struggles to protect.
A blockade is a measure by which one or more States seek to isolate a geographical area in order to force it to submit by depriving it of the resources necessary for its survival. It can be manifested by military controls at entry and exit points and economic measures by imposing sanctions. Unlike a siege, which is characterized by encirclement, isolation and attacks aimed at annihilating resistance, the blockade seeks to asphyxiate the target in a broader and indirect manner.
Asphyxiation strategy
It is an act of war regulated by international humanitarian law, which obliges States to grant, despite everything, the free passage of humanitarian and impartial relief essential to the survival of civilians. Sieges are illegal if they do not spare health facilities and if there is no agreement on the evacuation of the wounded and sick, children and pregnant women. Furthermore, starvation must not be used as a weapon of war, and humanitarian aid must be authorized to respond to the excessive deprivation of civilians.
An example of a recent blockade is that imposed on territories controlled by Houthi militias in Yemen in 2015 by an international coalition in support of loyalist forces led by Saudi Arabia, with the support of France, the United Kingdom and the United States. This military strategy, intended to weaken the enemy, has above all dramatically deteriorated the living conditions of Yemeni civilians, causing a severe food crisis for 17 million people, including 500,000 severely malnourished children. The war has also destroyed half of the country’s health facilities, making access to care difficult. The cholera epidemic that began in 2016 illustrates the scale of the resulting humanitarian crisis. International NGOs have called for an end to this strategy of asphyxiation and collective punishment, while deliberate attacks on health infrastructure have prevented an appropriate humanitarian response.
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