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  • Why British and US strikes on Yemen are not working

    On Jan. 11, 2024, Britain and the US initiated airstrikes in Yemen with the stated goal to degrade the capabilities of the Ansarullah movement—better known as the Houthis. The decision was prompted by the Iran-backed movement’s claim of targeting ships headed to and from Israel since Nov. 2023, in an effort to allegedly force a ceasefire in Gaza. However, the western strikes have not been effective. Paradoxically, they have instead emboldened the Houthis to escalate their attacks.

  • Perspective: Saudi Arabia’s Eastward Turn: Shifting Relations with Yemeni Tribes

    Saudi Arabia’s relationship with Yemeni tribes has undergone many changes over recent decades, focused mainly on cultivating direct ties with Yemeni tribal sheikhs. With a shared 1,800 km-long border, the Kingdom has closely monitored developments inside Yemen, placing significant importance on its relationship with tribal leaders as a means of “influenc[ing] internal political decision-making in Yemen in line with its interests.”[1] Such ties, however, are neither fixed nor homogeneous and have evolved based on the mutual interests of both parties. Saudi Arabia’s Eastward Turn: Shifting Relations with Yemeni Tribes - The Yemen Review, Quarterly: January-March 2024 - Sana'a Center For Strategic Studies https://sanaacenter.org/the-yemen-review/jan-mar-2024/22287

  • Opinion: The Gulf states will not move against Yemen’s Houthis without decisive Western intervention

    Mere strikes on the rebel group will not be sufficient to convince the Gulf states to join in any action in the quagmire that is Yemen from which they have just managed to extract themselves, nor will guarantees of support if they agree to do so. The Gulf states may be more wary than ever of promises from the West, and will not be swayed without first seeing decisive and independent Western military action.

  • U.S. Special Envoy for Yemen Lenderking’s Travel to Saudi Arabia and Oman

    U.S. Special Envoy for Yemen Tim Lenderking is traveling to Saudi Arabia and Oman this week to meet with partners to discuss the need for an immediate cessation of Houthi attacks in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden, which are undermining progress on the Yemen peace process and the delivery of humanitarian assistance to Yemen and other countries in need.
    The United States remains firmly committed to supporting a durable peace in Yemen and alleviating the complex humanitarian and economic crises harming the Yemeni people. The United States supports a return to UN-led peace efforts once the Houthis halt their indiscriminate attacks.
    Special Envoy Lenderking will meet with regional counterparts to discuss the steps to de-escalate the current situation and renew focus on securing a durable peace for the Yemeni people.

  • Yemen’s Houthis Tell China, Russia Their Ships Won’t Be Targeted

    The Yemen-based Houthis have told China and Russia their ships can sail through the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden without being attacked, according to several people with knowledge of the militant group’s discussions. China and Russia reached an understanding following talks between their diplomats in Oman and Mohammed Abdel Salam, one of the Houthis’ top political figures, said the people, who asked not to be named discussing private matters.

  • The Challenge With the Deter and Degrade Approach in Yemen

    Over the course of the past month, the United States and, on occasion, the United Kingdom have conducted an ongoing series of strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen. These strikes have two goals. First, the United States wants to deter the Houthis from carrying out future attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea. Second, and relatedly, the United States is seeking to compel the Houthis to cease their attacks by inflicting pain on the group – degrading the Houthis’ military capacity to the point that they are either unwilling or unable to carry out more attacks in the Red Sea.

  • Red Sea Cargo Ship Crew Abandons Vessel Off Yemen After Houthi Attack

    The crew of a commercial ship in the Red Sea abandoned the vessel following a Houthi attack — the first such evacuation since the militant group began menacing trade in the vital waterway late last year. Two-anti ship ballistic missiles damaged the Belize-flagged Rubymar on Sunday evening local time, US Central Command said Monday on social media platform X. A coalition warship and another merchant ship responded to the distress call, and the Rubymar’s crew were transported to a nearby port, it added.

  • Yemen to receive second $250 million tranche of Saudi grant soon, central-bank governor says

    Yemen will receive a second $250 million instalment from a Saudi one-year $1 billion grant on Sunday or Monday to support salary payments, its central bank governor told Reuters. Ahmed bin Ahmed Ghaleb Al-Maabqi said the remaining $500 million of the grant, from which the first $250 million was paid out last August, has yet to be transferred to the bank, based in the southern port of Aden. The bank supports the Saudi-backed government as it struggles with a weak currency and high fuel and commodity prices.

  • Saudi Arabia Sends $250 Million to Prop Up Yemeni Government

    Saudi Arabia said Sunday it had disbursed $250 million in aid to the internationally recognized government in Yemen, which the Gulf kingdom has backed in a war against Houthi rebels. The money follows an initial payment of the same amount announced in August, when Riyadh committed to provide $1.2 billion to ease the government's budget deficit and pay civil servants salaries. "The second batch of the grant to support addressing the budget deficit for the Yemeni government was transferred to the Central Bank of Yemen in Aden, amounting to $250 million to support salaries, wages and expenses," Mohammed al-Jaber, the Saudi ambassador to Yemen, said on social media.

  • Houthi negotiator says Red Sea attacks won’t deter Yemeni peace, praises Saudi ‘brothers’

    Mohammed Abdulsalam, chief negotiator and spokesperson of the Houthis, says that the recent meeting of the Sanaa delegation with Saudi Arabia officials has “resulted in overcoming the most important obstacles facing the roadmap” to peace. These solutions were in line with those championed by the UN envoy to Yemen, Hans Grundberg, said Abdulsalam in a wide-ranging interview with Asharq Al-Awsat on Thursday. Abdulsalam had previously called Saudi Arabia officials his “brothers” in a statement to Asharq Al-Awsat in January. He did so again on Thursday, and answered questions about peace initiatives, attacks in the Red Sea and regional and international relations.