Conflict in Yemen Continues On
UAE and Saudi forces are in a coalition against Houthi rebels. Source: BBC
The decades-long conflict in Yemen has once more reentered the news as Houthi rebels have mounted an attack on a Yemeni military base. The attack is the latest in decades-long instability turned proxy war in the small gulf nation that has involved some of the biggest world powers. The conflict has led to one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises as the country has struggled with cholera outbreaks due to damaged water supply and famines caused by port blockades, and of course COVID-19.
The conflict traces back to the 1990’s, where, after a civil war between Northern and Southern factions, Yemen reunified and seemed to turn towards a peaceful future as they democratically elected a president. However, by the early 2000’s President Ali Abdullah Saleh faced off once more against the Houthi rebels led by a dissident Shia cleric. The insurgency waxed and waned for the following decade until the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings, a series of protests throughout the Middle East calling for better governance. The protests centered on President Saleh’s corruption and the generally poor economy of Yemen. Eventually the protests forced the Yemeni leader to end his 33 year rule. Shortly after, President Saleh’s replacement and former deputy, Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, was forced to flee the capital as the Houthi rebels took Sanaa and strategic ports. By March, 2015 admist a continuing Houthi offense, the Islamic State claimed their first major attacks — suicide bombing two Shiaa mosques. Finally, President Hadi fled Yemen seeking refuge in Saudi Arabia.
Saudi Arabia, viewing the Shia Houthi rebels as a threat to their Sunni majority country, formed a coalition of other major regional powers at the request of President Hadi, which includes: the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, Bahrain, Sudan, and Kuwait to begin air strikes against Houthi targets. Additionally, the United States, alongside Britain, pledged monetary and intelligence support to the coalition, including the sale of arms. Around the same time, the Houthis began to receive support from Shia-majority country Iran — turning what started as a local power struggle and civil war into a proxy-war involving some of the strongest regional and global powers.
Over the course of a decade and two US administrations, funding to the Saudi coalition continued nearly unchecked. It is estimated that the US facilitated over $100 billion in arms deals with Saudi Arabia during the Obama administration and $110 billion from the Trump administration, along with countless other billions of dollars from countries such as France, the UK, and Canada.
There have been some high profile incidents that have garnered media attention through the course of the conflict. These include the 2015 drone strike on a wedding that killed 131 civilians, the destruction of a school bus full of children by a US weapon and the recent alleged Iranian drone attack on a Saudi oil field that was claimed by Yemeni rebels. Outside of major catastrophes and actions that threaten the global economy, most developments in Yemen have remained largely out of American headlines and the public’s consciousness.
Only recently have mounting calls to end US involvement in Yemen been heeded as President Biden revoked the title of a Foreign Terrorist Organization for the Houthis, which had been used by the Trump administration to justify US attacks. Further, President Biden declared an end to US involvement with the Saudi coalition.
Despite US distancing, the conflict has raged on as Houthi forces unleashed a drone strike on a coalition military base killing between 30-40 coalition troops and injuring scores more. For Yemeni civilians this is just the latest sign that the conflict shows little signs of slowing down
Since early 2021, Yemen has been grappling with the same situation Afghanistan has found itself in, and many questions posed in the aftermath of US withdrawal are relevant in Yemen. How long is it ethical for a foreign country to extend conflict over their own ideologies? Just as the US was determined to keep communism from Afghanistan, Saudi Arabia is determined to keep Shias away from legitimacy in Yemen. At what point is foreign interventionism doing more harm than good? It is hard not to view what has happened in Afghanistan and Yemen as evidence of American failures abroad. Unfortunately, Yemen is in no better place today than it was when the US began funding the coalition in 2015.