The south, meanwhile, has seen the growing power of the United Arab Emirates, which is part of a coalition meant to protect the internationally recognized government in the war with Shiite rebels while also fighting al-Qaida. The north remains in the hands of the Houthis backed by army units loyal to Hadi's predecessor, former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who was removed by a 2011 uprising. Here is a look at the multiple levels on which the war has devastated the country of 26 million, which even before the conflict was the Arab world's poorest nation. The cholera outbreak spread with startling speed after two months of heavy rains in the north, exacerbated by the pile-up of garbage in streets — trash collectors are among those who have gone unpaid — and the lack of access to clean water for millions of people. A child under the age of five dies every 10 minutes of preventable causes, and 2.2 million babies, boys and girls, are acutely malnourished with almost half a million children suffering from severe acute malnutrition, a 63 percent increase since late 2015, according to Stephen O'Brien of the Office of Coordination of Humanitarian Assistance. [...] they have also hit hospitals, schools, outdoor markets and residential areas to a degree that rights groups have said may amount to a war crime. The opposition says they hold thousands of political prisoners in secret prisons, including in private houses. Critics accuse Houthis of profiting from the crisis by imposing extra tariffs and taxes for "the war effort" as well as engaging in fuel smuggling. Human rights activists accuse them of abuses, illegal detentions and extrajudicial killings. A sign of the power struggle surfaced two months ago when Hadi ordered to removal of two top UAE allies — Aden's governor Aidarous al-Zubaidi, and a Cabinet member, Hani Bin Braik, the founder of the Security Belt.