For Yemen Child Soldiers, a Refuge Mixes Play With Saudi Propaganda
A child’s drawing of a battle scene, right, at the Saudi-financed rehabilitation center for child soldiers. At left, a child in red identifies himself on a hill, facing his enemy on the other hill. Tyler Hicks/The New York Times MARIB, Yemen — A display on one side of the doorway holds children’s drawings of violence and gore: red scribbles of blood on pencil sketches of bombs, bullets and bodies; a machine gun firing across a stone wall into a tent; a detailed depiction in crayon of a Kalashnikov rifle. A display on the other side holds happy visions of the future — like a boy with his foot on a soccer ball holding up a trophy, and a smiling army officer with three big stars on each shoulder. In between is the entrance to the center for the rehabilitation of child soldiers in Marib, Yemen, financed by Saudi Arabia. A photograph of King Salman hangs on the wall. Open a little more than a year, the center has provided up to six weeks of schooling and play in a comfortab