Fact check: How many Yemenis died of in the Saudi led war when Obama was president?

1. Summary of the results

The analyses reveal that none of the sources provide a specific number of Yemeni deaths during Obama's presidency (March 2009 - January 2017). While the Saudi-led war in Yemen began in March 2015 during Obama's tenure, the available sources only offer broader casualty figures for the entire conflict duration.

Key findings include:

• The war resulted in at least 377,000 Yemeni deaths by the end of 2021 ^[1]
• Thousands of civilians were killed and nearly three million people displaced since the war began in 2014 ^[2]
• The United States killed many hundreds of Yemenis with drone and other air strikes, though this figure spans beyond Obama's presidency ^[3]
• US-made bombs were responsible for killing civilians during the conflict ^[4]

2. Missing context/alternative viewpoints

The original question lacks crucial context about the timeline and US involvement in the Yemen conflict:

• Obama's role in initiating US support: The analyses indicate that Obama's administration began supporting the Saudi-led military effort in Yemen, providing arms and intelligence ^{[5] [4]}
• Creative accounting practices: The US used questionable methods for counting 'militants' versus civilians killed, which could significantly affect casualty attribution ^[3]
• Broader humanitarian crisis: The focus solely on deaths omits the massive displacement of nearly three million people and the broader humanitarian catastrophe ^[2]
• Continuation beyond Obama: The conflict and US involvement extended well beyond Obama's presidency, making it difficult to isolate deaths specifically during his tenure

Defense contractors and arms manufacturers would benefit from minimizing focus on specific casualty numbers during Obama's presidency, as it could reduce scrutiny of weapons sales. Conversely, political opponents of Obama would benefit from having precise casualty figures to assign direct responsibility.

3. Potential misinformation/bias in the original statement

The original question contains an implicit assumption that precise casualty figures exist for Obama's specific presidential term, when the analyses show no sources provide this specific breakdown ^{[2] [1] [5] [4] [3]}.

The framing "Saudi led war when Obama was president" potentially minimizes US complicity in the conflict. The analyses reveal that the US was not merely a passive observer but an active participant providing arms and support to the Saudi-led coalition ^{[5] [4]}.

Additionally, the question's focus on a specific presidential term may artificially compartmentalize responsibility for a conflict that began under Obama but continued and escalated under subsequent administrations, making precise attribution of casualties to any single presidency methodologically problematic.