DUBAI, Nov 12 — Beset by poverty, war and repression, the residents of Yemen’s ancient capital Sanaa, under Houthi control for over a decade, struggle to survive.

The Iran-backed Houthi movement seized the city in 2014, forcing the government to flee south and sparking a brutal civil war in one of the world’s poorest countries.

In Sanaa, said to be one of the world’s oldest continuously inhabited cities, residents say they long for the pre-war days and a measure of prosperity.

“Before the war, salaries were paid in full on a regular basis,” Ammar, a 24-year-old university student who asked not to use his last name for security reasons, told AFP by phone.