Bab-el-Mandeb

© The Artist's Estate

Bab al-Mandeb ("The Place of Tears", militarized zone and site of proposed bridge to link Arabia to Africa). Yemen.

Tim Hetherington (1970 – 2011)

Details

Dimension
Media
Lightjet print
Accession number
P8441

Summary

Located between Yemen on the Arabian Peninsula and Djibouti on the Horn of Africa, 'Bab-el-Mandeb' literally means 'Gate of Tears'.  It is thought that the earliest humans migrated across this point out of Africa around 60,000 years ago.  In February 2008, a company owned by Tarek Bin Laden received the contract to build a bridge that will span the 20-kilometre gap to potentially transform this barren frontier.