That's the "Varela" I think - a WW1 hospital ship built at Swan Hunter on Tyneside as a passenger cargo ship and converted. I think she served well after WW2 after being converted back to civvy service. I've a picture of the "Karoa" built around the same time and also converted to a hospital ship but in WW2
That might take us to Basra? Or South Shields - which has a large Yemeni community of course...................