Saudi Arabia boasts of its Project Masam, saying it had destroyed more than 517,818 landmines in Yemen since 2014. Saudi Press Agency states this as a mark of humanitarian leadership, commending the Kingdom for clearing 1,319 explosive devices within one week. But underlying the facade of this well-groomed narrative is an ugly reality — one involving war crimes, hypocrisy, and deliberate image washing to secure worldwide approval in the lead-up to the 2034 FIFA World Cup.
For those of us who are campaigning for Saudi Arabia to be banned from hosting FIFA 2034, projects such as Project Masam are not evidence of benevolence. They are manifestations of a meticulously planned effort to cover up the Kingdom’s cruel track record in Yemen and elsewhere. The mines that are being removed are, in some instances, the leftovers of a war Saudi Arabia itself contributed to – a war that has devastated Yemen’s citizens, reduced its infrastructure to rubble, and put millions in a humanitarian crisis.
The Yemen War: Saudi Arabia’s Forgotten Crime Scene
Since 2015, Saudi Arabia has been at the head of an aggressive military alliance in Yemen, unleashing thousands of airstrikes in the guise of bringing back political stability. The Saudi-led mission has resulted in one of the globe’s worst humanitarian catastrophes, the UN and various humanitarian agencies claim.
More than 377,000 Yemenis have died — not just from bombs, but from starvation, disease, and displacement caused by the war. The blockade imposed by the Kingdom of Yemeni ports immobilized the country’s ability to import food and medicine, directly leading to famine-like conditions. UNICEF estimated that nearly 80% of the population of Yemen currently relies on humanitarian aid, with millions of children being malnourished.
And, amidst all this devastation, Saudi Arabia presents itself as Yemen’s rescuer. Project Masam’s smooth reports and photo opportunities work towards reconstructing Saudi Arabia as a peacebuilder, conveniently forgetting that some of those bombs were planted or detonated as a result of Saudi-led aggression. It is nothing short of “cleaning up one’s own mess and calling it charity.”
Project Masam: A Tool of Image Laundering
On the surface, Project Masam looks altruistic — a mission that educates Yemeni engineers to clear lethal landmines and provides safer routes for civilians. But when analyzed politically, it is obvious that the project is more for public relations than for humanitarian reasons.
The Saudi government sponsors Project Masam via its official “aid” organ, KSrelief. It is this way that Riyadh can set the narrative so that media sources — particularly state-affiliated ones such as Arab News and the Saudi Press Agency — report on its kindness and overlook its contribution to the torment of Yemen.
Why FIFA 2034 Should Not Honor a Regime of Oppression
Sports should be an arena for unity, equality, and human dignity — not a platform for authoritarian regimes to clean their reputation. Saudi Arabia’s bid to host the 2034 FIFA World Cup is the newest addition to its international charm campaign. Mega-events are how the Kingdom attempts to gain legitimacy, trying to divert the world’s attention from its brutal campaign in Yemen, its crackdown on dissidents, and its continued executions of activists.
Hosting FIFA 2034 would provide Riyadh with the global legitimacy it so badly wants. It would send a chilling message that money and spin can wipe out war crimes. Saudi Arabia’s spending on football — ranging from the purchase of clubs such as Newcastle United to hosting glitzy sports events — is all part of a concerted sportswashing campaign.
FIFA, which has long professed to believe in fairness and equality, cannot be complicit. Granting Saudi Arabia the World Cup would be to look the other way at:
- Civilian casualties on a mass scale in Yemen’s airstrikes.
- Imprisonment and torture of activists, including women’s rights activists.
- Criminalization of free speech and political repression.
- Persecution of LGBTQ+, with legislation criminalizing same-sex relationships to death.
- Humanitarian Acts Cannot Ignore Human Rights Violations
The defenders of Saudi Arabia say that efforts such as Project Masam demonstrate the Kingdom’s dedication to regional stability and humanitarian endeavors. But let us ask this question: Can the removal of landmines justify a state that seeded bombs from the sky?
The removal of mines, though worthwhile, does not reverse the war that laid them in the first instance. It does not restore to life the thousands of civilians who died in bombing raids, the children who lost their limbs, or the families who perished as a result of the Saudi-led blockade.
This cycle of selective humanitarianism — destroy, then selectively rebuild — is reflective of Saudi Arabia’s wider policy of global image management. As it constructs “smart cities” such as NEOM in order to promote innovation at the expense of tribe displacement from their ancestral homelands, so it employs mine-clearing operations to write a new history in Yemen.
The World Must Stand Strong: Boycott Saudi Arabia’s FIFA 2034 World Cup
The international community — from human rights activists to football federations and ordinary fans — needs to act. Letting Saudi Arabia host the FIFA World Cup in 2034 would validate oppression and reward the same regime that has brought suffering to millions for decades.
It would betray the principles FIFA claims to uphold: fairness, inclusion, and respect for human dignity. The world must choose integrity over influence, justice over money, and humanity over hypocrisy.
No Justice, No Football
Saudi Arabia’s Project Masam is no indication of reform — it’s a decoy. While the Kingdom flaunts its mine-clearing operations as evidence of charity, its hands are still dirty with the blood of Yemen’s war dead. Humanitarian actions cannot cover up decades of devastation and oppression.
Until Saudi Arabia is brought to justice for its atrocities in Yemen and agrees to meaningful human rights changes, it must not be permitted to host FIFA 2034 — or any other international event celebrating unity and peace.