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Yemen is at a major crossroads, facing unprecedented challenges in its history. The country’s ability to recover from its current political, social, economic, and humanitarian crisis is yet to be determined. Millions were impacted by the current crisis and few have escaped the tensions between the Houthis and their allies, and military response of the Saudi led coalition bombing of Yemen. First efforts to bring the parties together have failed and the chances of a political solution will need to ensure the participation of all parties.
The entire political landscape has changed drastically since Yemen embarked on an extraordinary experiment in the Arab world, the National Dialogue Conference.1 The political transition, in trouble for some time, began to unravel in September 2014, when the Houthis, a predominantly Zaidi group also known as Answar Allah, took over the Yemeni capital of Sana’a and effectively sidelined President Abdul Rabbo Mansour Hadi’s government. Ensuing conflicts over the draft constitution, as well as control over state institutions, led the Houthis and their allies to consolidate their control over the capital. This led to the resignations of President Hadi and the Prime Minister Khaled Bahah. After a forced house arrest, President Hadi fled temporarily to Aden and then to Riyadh, where he is now heading a government in exile composed of eight ministers and with Bahah at its helm.
On March 26 2015, acting on the invitation of President Hadi and in the context of worsening Saudi/Iranian relations, the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) led by Saudi Arabia and joined by other Arab nations launched airstrikes against Houthi targets in response to their growing expansion towards southern Yemen.
Widespread fighting continues to be reported with a very high humanitarian cost to the people of Yemen and damage to vital infrastructure. To date, no political agreement has been signed in spite of tireless efforts by the United Nations and intermediaries like Oman to broker an agreement. The Houthis and their allies continue to refuse the conditions demanded by President Hadi’s government. The conflict has also created a power vacuum, which has allowed Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and the Islamic State (IS) to take advantage.
The escalating conflict in Yemen has generated casualties, internal displacement, and destruction of infrastructure, and has exacerbated a pre-existing humanitarian crisis. It is estimated that close to 80 percent the Yemeni population are in dire need of humanitarian assistance.