Between chalk and a gun... A Yemeni teacher writes his legend with blood and sacrifice.

The next night, while he and his comrades were planning to re-fortify their positions, he was surprised by the light of the explosive device shining in front of him. He knew it was the target, but there was no time to think. He shouted to his comrades, "Go back. I'm going to die. The front must not lose any more!"

Taha recounts the details of the night he lost his limbs, saying, "We were planning to place dust-filled barrels to replace those the Houthis had blown up, to protect us during the crossing. We sat and consulted until midnight, then decided to go down to the headquarters for suhoor. We walked a new route to avoid snipers, and suddenly, as I was advancing, I saw the light of the explosive device ignite in front of me."

He added, "The young men were behind me, and as usual, I insisted on going first, so that if there was an ambush, I would be the one who received it. I threw myself at the light and shouted, 'Go back, I'm the old man, I'm going to die,' and the bomb exploded." Taha woke up to find himself without legs, one hand, and one eye, but he was grateful to have saved his comrades from certain death.

The Warrior Teacher

Taha Hassan was born in 1974 in Sharab Ar Rawnah. He loved reading and knowledge, and has worked as a teacher since 1990. In 2003, he married and settled in Maqbanah District.

Taha embarked on a major cultural project, writing a book containing 7,000 questions and answers, inspired by the "Who Wants to Be a Millionaire" contest. His goal was not fame, but rather the dissemination of knowledge.

When the war broke out after the Houthi terrorist militia's coup in 2014, he didn't hesitate to carry a rifle, along with chalk. He says, "A bullet defends the land, but it doesn't build it. That's why I held a rifle in one hand and a book in the other."

Taha would spend the day with his students and return to the front at night, adhering to his duty in both fields. He added, "I would enter the classroom with a cheerful face despite the exhaustion, because I wanted my students to see hope in me, not exhaustion."

"Either victory... or martyrdom"

Taha knew his journey would not be easy, but he chose his path clearly: “I always carried my shroud with me. I used to say to myself: Either victory or martyrdom, there is no third way.”

Despite the fighting, he wasn't afraid of death. He returned with his comrades and recaptured his village from Houthi control, only to find his home reduced to rubble by the bombing. But he didn't grieve; he saw it as a natural price to pay for the sake of his homeland.

Today, after losing his limbs and an eye, teacher Taha Hassan lies in Al-Thawra Hospital in Taiz, struggling with the pain with the patience of a fighter, while his family suffers in silence. The authorities have ignored him, and he has not received the recognition he deserves. "How many heroes like Taha are there, fighting in silence, only to be forgotten after giving their lives, while doors are opened for those who have offered nothing!"

But even after all this, Taha didn't lose hope. Lying in his hospital bed, he said, "A person who doesn't learn from his ordeal is stupid. I may have lost my feet, my hands, and my eyes... but I've gained time. I no longer have to move around, which means I'll be reading and reviewing everything I've read before. It's as if God is telling me: 'Rest your feet and use your mind.'"

Between the gun and the chalk, Taha Hassan wrote his legend. That's how he was, and that's how he will remain... a teacher and a fighter, a hero whose resolve was not broken by death, and whose pen never fell from his hand, even if he was no longer able to hold it. But will his story remain just a line in the nation's memory, or will justice find its way to him one day?