Yemen


 * ''See also Saudi Arabia attacks Yemen



Explainers of the recent history of the Yemeni conflict

 * Video: Yemen - 28 years of history explained - Geo History July 19, 2018 The unification of the Soviet allied South Yemen with the islamic North Yemen, Presidents Salah and Hadi, the emergence of the Houthis in the north and the southern seperatists, AQAP, tensions within the coalition between UAE and Saudia Arabia
 * Video: Yemen's complicated war explained - TRT World, August 10, 2018 Outlines some political developments and shifting alliances - although weaker on wider context.
 * Yemen War: Introductory articles, overviews, for those who are still unfamiliar with the Yemen war - Dietrich Klose Der Freitag community
 * Qassem Soleimani and Iran’s Unique Regional Strategy - Ali Soufan, CTC Sentinel (West Point), November 2018 (PDF, archive), section Playing the “Great Game:” Yemen, 2015-present
 * Why Is Yemen Ignored When Syria Dominates The Headlines? - Jay Tharrapel Fort Russ January 22, 2019
 * Yemen demystified: An unwinnable war of plunder that could bring down the Saudis - Joe Gill, MEE February 5, 2019
 * Blumi, a lecturer in Turkish studies at Stockholm University, wants to upend the western and Arabic media narrative of the Yemen war. Instead of the “internationally recognised government of Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi” fighting “Iran-backed Houthi rebels” (AFP's favoured framing), the author describes a war with origins a century old that has little or nothing to do with Iranian expansion or terrorism, and everything to do with eliminating resistance to the western-backed Arab Gulf states.


 * The Sectarianization of political conflicts in Yemen - Yayha al Hasani, Uprising Today July 10, 2019
 * To sum up, it is profoundly wrong to characterize the Yemeni conflict as sectarian or only as part of the proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran. At the same time, it is naive to neglect the importance of ideology – in this case, religion – in such a complicated conflict. The informal institutions set up by Zaydis and Shafi’is, like avoiding sectarian disagreements in public and avoiding referring to each other derogatorily, as a whole, were slowly disintegrated by Saudi’s forceful propagation of aggressive Salafism into Yemen since the early 1980s.


 * Yemen’s who’s who – The road map of a conflict - Catherine Shakdam, Next Century Foundation, September 25, 2019
 * Yemen’s Timeline – An Overview - Catherine Shakdam, Next Century Foundation, September 25, 2019
 * Video: Scott Horton Explains The History of the Conflict in Yemen - Unregistered Podcast, February 17, 2021
 * Futile: Saudi’s Decade-Long Attempt to Bottle Up Yemeni Youth Revolution is Failing - Ahmed Abdulkareem, Mint Press News, February 26, 2021

Saudi Strategy

 * Leaked documents: Saudi Arabia sought to divide Yemen - Mohammed Ayesh, MEE, August 4, 2020

Strategic importance of the Bab al Mandab strait

 * This strait is a strategic route for Persian Gulf oil, natural gas, and petroleum product shipments to Europe and North America, as well as European and North African oil exports to Asia GlobalSecurity.org
 * The daily passage of millions of barrels of oil, the maritime traffic of trade towards the Suez Canal and the Saudi Refinery in Yenbu’, and the flow of oil tankers and other commercial vessels to destinations such as China and Europe, have given special importance to the Gulf of Aden and the Strait of Bab al-Mandab. The presence Somali pirates also greatly enhances the importance of stability and security in Yemen in general and the Gulf of Aden and the Strait of Bab al-Mandab.Farzad Farhadi
 * Strategic importance of the Bab al Mandab straight 1991 US Army College study
 * U.S. Central Command Statement on Operation Sentinel July 19, 2019
 * Strategic Importance of the Indian Ocean, Yemen and Bab-el-Mandeb Strait - Philly Guy, Saker Blog, August 5, 2020

Historical

 * Bab El Mandeb Blockade Aimed at Stifling Israel - Jewish Telegraphic Agency November 7, 1973
 * The strategic importance of the southern entrance to the Red Sea has been apparent for generations. The British, the first to recognize the importance of the straits, established strongholds as to safeguard their shipping routes to India. The best way to control the straits was to hold the island of Perim situated between the shores of the Arabian peninsula and Djibouti, East Africa.

2019
Control of the port of Al Mokha (or Mocha) remains strategically key for the coalition to exert itself over the Bab al Mandeb shipping lane:
 * Saudi measures to secure Yemeni al-Mokha and al-Khokha ports after UAE reduced its troops - Debreifer July 12, 2017

2020

 * International Crisis Group: Bab Al Mandeb Threat level critical - January 2, 2020
 * Fars January 6: In the wake of the assasination of Qaseem Soleimani - The Arabic-language Masa Press news website reported on Monday that the US forces have entered Yemen to cooperate with their Saudi counterparts to support the US trade cargos in Bab al-Mandab strait.
 * Jan 7 Yemen Press Agency picks up reports of coalition expansion of facilities at Mocha port.

Makeup of the coalition attacking Yemen


French and Israeli presence has also been reported - see below.
 * As recorded by the Yemen Data project the military coalition attacking Yemen is led by Saudi Arabia... also includes participation from the United Arab Emirates, Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, Sudan, Kuwait, Qatar and Bahrain. The military coalition is backed by the United States and the United Kingdom with the US providing intelligence and logistical support, and the US and UK also having their military personnel deployed in the Saudi command-and-control centre for coalition airstrikes.


 * On February 7, 2019, Morocco quits the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen and withdraws its ambassador from Riyadh.


 * Sudan pledges to continue supporting Saudi-led coalition in Yemen MEE April 15, 2019

Estimated death toll

 * The impact of the war in Yemen Campaign Against Arms Trade
 * Yemen death toll five times higher than previous estimate, researchers say MEE october 29, 2018
 * 233,000 Have Died in the War on Yemen Daniel Larison American Conservative April 28, 2019

Who are the 'Houthis'?
Southfront Documentary
 * Yemen’s Houthis Are No Iran Proxy Shi'ite Militia Has Roots in Domestic Politics Jason Ditz, Antiwar.com March 31, 2015
 * YEMEN’S ANSAR ALLAH MOVEMENT (HOUTHIS): WHAT IS IT? Southfront July 17, 2017
 * THE HOUTHIS AND WAR IN YEMEN Southfront July 3, 2018 Documentary and text overview of Houthis and the conflict

Allegations of Iranian backing
See also Iranian Missiles?, Blockade of Yemen
 * Contrary to ROYG claims that Iran is arming the Houthis, most analysts report that the Houthis obtain their weapons from the Yemeni black market and even from the ROYG military itself. 2009 US State Dept report from Ambassador in Sanaa - Wikileaks
 * Despite the coalition/UN blockade of ports and Saana airport being disabled claims of an arms smuggling route from Iran to the Houthis have persisted. A land route via Oman seems unlikely as the large swathe of sparsely populated territory in the east of Yemen is controlled not by the Houthi aligned forces, but by Hadi/coalition aligned forces or AQAP. According to Southfront:
 * A number of experts believe that Iran’s financial assistance does not exceed 10-20 million dollars a year. It should be noted that the Islamic Republic’s capacity to provide assistance to Yemen is now limited, as Iran is also providing financial assistance, weapon and personnel to Hezbollah as well as to Shia militias in Syria and Iraq. Moreover, Yemen is currently under a sea and land blockade. Therefore, the possibilities to assist the Houthis are severely limited. Several Iranian vessels captured by the forces of the coalition in 2014 contained rockets for multiple rocket launchers, MANPADS, RPG-7 grenade launchers, explosives, cartridges, small arms and Iranian-made night vision devices.


 * US generals: Saudi intervention in Yemen ‘a bad idea’ Al Jazeera April 17, 2018 View of American expert on Yemen Michael Horton in 2015:
 *  “These constant reports that the Houthis are working for the Iranians are nonsense, but the view is right out of the neocon playbook,” he said. “The Israelis have been touting this line that we lost Yemen to Iran. That’s absurd. The Houthis don’t need Iranian weapons. They have plenty of their own. And they don’t require military training. They’ve been fighting Al-Qaeda since at least 2012, and they’ve been winning. Why are we fighting a movement that’s fighting Al-Qaeda?”


 * Did IRGC commander say Houthis were ordered to strike tankers? Amir Toumaj, FDD's Long War Journal August 9, 2018
 * Saudi Arabia’s Self-Fulfilling Houthi Prophecy - Rawan Shaif, Foreign Policy, October 2, 2019
 * ''The Yemeni minority group hardly had anything to do with Iran—until the Saudis got involved.
 * In shift, State’s Hook says Yemen’s Houthis independent from Iran - Al-Monitor, December 5, 2019


 * Houthis Prove Once Again That Saudi Blockade Does Not Work (Videos, Photos) - SouthFront, December 20, 2020
 * On December 19, the Interior Ministry of the Sanaa-based Yemeni government, which is led by the Houthis [Ansar Allah], presented a locally-made armored vehicle, dubbed “Bass-1.” The vehicle was showcased during the inauguration ceremony of the Interior Ministry’s Security Manufacturing Unit in Sanaa.

Reports of traffic from Iran

 * U.S. Navy says it seized weapons from Iran likely bound for Houthis in Yemen-Reuters, April 4, 2016
 * ''U.S. Navy ships in the Arabian Sea intercepted and seized an arms shipment from Iran likely bound for Houthi fighters in Yemen, the military said...The weapons seized last week by the warships Sirocco and Gravely were hidden on a small dhow and included 1,500 AK-47 rifles, 200 rocket-propelled grenade (RPG) launchers, and 21 .50-caliber machine guns, according to the Navy statement...The boat, which the Navy described as stateless, and its crew were allowed to leave once the weapons were taken.
 * UN investigators check weapons seized by Navy warship, by Lolita C. Baldor, The Associated Press. Navy Times, October 25, 2018
 * ''...U.N. inspectors boarded the American guided-missile destroyer, to examine the more than 2,500 guns the crew seized in late August and determine if suspicions are true that the weapons originated in Iran. U.S. officials have long accused Iran of smuggling arms across the waters to Yemen’s Shiite Houthi rebels, who have held Yemen’s capital, Sanaa, since September 2014. But they have only managed to seize a handful of weapons caches in recent years, underscoring the difficulties in tracking down arms smugglers working the vast waters around Yemen. “It’s one big traffic corridor,” Vice Adm. Scott Stearney, commander of U.S. 5th Fleet, told reporters Thursday. “It’s not blocked, and it’s not just lines on a map that people don’t penetrate.”

Southern Seperatists and UAE-Saudi clashes
Moved to UAE Saudi proxy conflict: southern seperatists and Hadi government in exile

UAE role in Yemen
Moved to UAE in the Yemen conflict

Sudanese forces

 * Saudi Arabia’s Blood Pact With a Genocidal Strongman Mark Perry, The American Conservative December 5, 2018
 * The Saudis and UAE bribed Sudan's president to send Janjaweed fighters to be cannon fodder in Yemen. It's not working out.


 * 30,000 Sudanese forces fighting in Yemen: Official Somalia Top News June 23, 2019
 * UAE Transfers Hundreds Of Mercenaries To Yemen And Libya Across Sudan - UAE Leaks, July 26 ,2019
 * Sudan’s New Premier to Exit Troops from Yemen War - Alwaght, December 6, 2019
 * 'Yemen conflict has no military solution': Sudan's Abdalla Hamdok - Al Jazeera, December 6, 2019
 * ‘It’s our biggest employer’: How a lucrative war in Yemen fuels conflict in Darfur 2,000km away - Bel Trew, The Independent, December 22, 2019

Turkish and Qatari influence
See also Al-Islah
 * Growing Turkish interference in Yemen stirs concern in Cairo - Amr Emam ,The Arab Weekly April 12, 2020
 * The expected military campaign of Turkey and Qatar in Yemen - Denis Korkodinov, World Geostrategic Insights, April 26, 2020
 * Muslim Brotherhood paves the way to Turkey in Yemen - Moaz Mohamed, The Portal, May 2020
 * New Evidence Suggests Turkey Preparing for Libya-Style Military Intervention in Yemen - Ahmed Abdulkareem, Mint Press, June 11, 2020

US role in Yemen

 * ''Moved to the US role in Yemen

Supply of weapons/European arms industry
Moved to Supply of weapons and European arms industry

UK role
Moved to UK role in Yemen conflict

French involvement

 * La France participerait activement mais «discrètement» à la guerre au Yémen aux côtés des Saoudiens RT Francais May 12, 2016
 * French special forces on the ground in Yemen — Le Figaro Gulf News June 16, 2018
 * French Special Forces on the Ground in Yemen Jason Ditz, Anti media, June 16, 2018


 * Yemen’s Navy Captures French Vessel Laden with Foreign Mercenaries Ahmed Abdulkareem Mint Press June 18, 2018

Documentary

 * Crimes de guerre au Yémen - Les complicités européennes Alexandra Jousset
 * En continuant à vendre des armes à l’Arabie Saoudite, la France, le Royaume-Uni et l’Allemagne seraient complices de crimes de guerre au Yémen. Face au silence des gouvernements, enquête sur les dessous d’un trafic opaque et lucratif.

Disclose.ngo and the DGSI Yemen papers leak

 * Disclose: Made in France
 * An unprecedented leak of secret documents has revealed the massive use of French-made weapons in the ongoing civil war in Yemen. Following several months of investigation, Disclose reports on how these weapons have been used against the civilian population.
 * Macron pursuing journalists who exposed French complicity in possible Saudi war crimes in Yemen RT April 26, 2019
 * "Macron moves to prosecute journalists who revealed French arms sales in Yemen war" - WSWS, April 26, 2019
 * French reporters questioned by intelligence service in leak investigation Committee to Protect Journalists May 14, 2019

Israeli influence?

 * Decisive Storm fuels Obama-Netanyahu dispute - Al Araby March 30, 2015
 * The « Arab » Common Defence Force - Thierry Meyssan May 14, 2015
 *  Israël was the first state to recognîse Somaliland. Currently, this state is no longer recognised by anyone, but since 2010, it acts as an Israeli base to control the Bab el-Mandeb Straits which link the Suez Canal and the Red Sea to the Gulf of Aden and the Indian Ocean.


 * The secret projects of Israël and Saudi Arabia - Thierry Meyssan, Voltaire Network June 27, 2015
 * Ansarullah Chief: Israeli Fighters Fly over Hudaydah amid Saudi Push to Seize City - Fars News, June 3, 2018
 * Poland: Israel reveals its military hand in Yemen - Voltaire Network, February 15, 2019
 * Yemen’s War Is a Mercenary Heaven. Are Israelis Reaping the Profits? - Zvi Bar'el Haaretz, February 17, 2019
 * UAE-backed STC in Yemen ‘secret friends’ with Israel - Middle East Monitor, June 22, 2020
 * With an Eye on Balkanization, Israel throws Support Behind Separatist Militants in Southern Yemen - Ahmed Abdulkareem, Mint Press, August 7, 2020


 * UAE ‘occupation forces’ appoint governor on Yemen’s Socotra Island - Middle East Monitor, September 3, 2020
 * As early as July, it was also reported by the Yemen Press Agency that a number of Egyptian and Emirati military experts had started to arrive on the island of Mayyun off the western Yemeni coast to arrange for an Israeli military base to be established.


 * 'South Yemen would normalise relations with Israel', UAE-backed group says - ''Middle East Monitor, February 4, 2021

See also UAE in the Yemen conflict and UAE Saudi proxy conflict: southern seperatists and Hadi government in exile and Socotra Post UAE-Israel deal

AQAP/ISIS and forces fighting alongside them

 * Wilayat al Bayda (ISIS affiliate) - Category: Jihadology.net
 * BBC Film Maker Discovers Saudi, UAE Cooperation With al-Qaeda In Yemen - Brandon Turberville, Feb 24, 2016
 * An Unholy Alliance: Did the US-Backed UAE Fly ISIS Leaders into Yemen’s Killing Fields? - Alexander Rubinstein, Mint Press, March 5, 2019
 * Islamic State weapons in Yemen traced back to US Government: Serbia files (part 1) - Dilyana Gaytandzhieva, September 1, 2019
 * US Task Force Smoking Gun smuggles weapons to Syria: Serbia files (part 2)
 * Leaked arms dealers’ passports reveal who supplies terrorists in Yemen: Serbia files (Part 3)


 * Houthis allege capture of Al Qaeda base in northern Yemen - Caleb Weiss, Long War Journal, April 21, 2020
 * As Saudi Forces Flee Northern Yemen, Evidence of an Unholy Alliance with Al-Qaeda is Left Behind - Ahmed Abdulkareem, MintPress, April 24, 2020
 * In Yemen, Western Foreign Policy Is Empowering al-Qaeda - Bas Spliet, Antiwar.com, June 15, 2020
 * Tony Toh Twitter, August 14, 2020 - A clip spread viral by Yemeni activists reportedly shows a doctor from #Taiz was crucified by #AQAP militants in Al Sawma’ah district after escaping from Qifa front. Terrorists accused him of working for Houthi Ansarullah. #Bayda
 * Video: Ansarallah(Houthi) offensive against Al-Qeada & ISIS in northwestern Bayda governorate - Eastern Lion, August 22, 2020
 * Video: Despite Saudi airstrikes Houthi forces capture ISIS positions in central Yemen - R&U Videos - August 23, 2020
 * Al Bayda liberation from ISIS and al-Qaeda dropped last chapters of aggression forces plan to occupy province, open front towards capital Sana'a: Security source for "Saba" - Saba, August 23, 2020
 * Massive Ansar Allah Operation in Central Yemen Reveals Alliance Between al-Qaeda and Islamic State - Ahmed Abdulkareem, Mint Press, August 28, 2020

More on the battle for Al Bayda and central Yemen 
 * ISIS participation in the Marib battles against Ansar Allah - ISWNews.com, February 18, 2021

Cooperation from Al Islah (Muslim Brotherhood)

 * Evidence emerges in Yemen of Al Qaeda-Muslim Brotherhood Cooperation against counter terrorism forces - Business Standard, September 4, 2019
 * STC accuses Islah of handing over positions to al-Qaeda elements - Yemen Press Agency, August 16, 2020

World Food Programme

 * Red Sea Mills, Hodeidah
 * World Food Program, Bribed By Saudis, Threatens Yemenis With More Famine Moon of Alabama Januray 1, 2019
 * AP Investigation: Food aid stolen as Yemen starves Maggie Michael Associated press December 31, 2019
 * Al-Houthi: “Position of WFP Based on Untrue Procedures Which Shows their Real Hidden Aim” January 1, 2018
 * As Yemen Starves, International Aid Agencies Play Politics With Food Ahmed Abdulkareem, Mint Press July 1, 2019

Sources to follow
Moved to Yemen sources

Warfare
''See also Saudi advance on Hodaidah, Operation Victory from God, Battle for Marib province
 * Ex-president Saleh offers 'all Yemen's facilities' to Russia, Brian Whitaker, al-bab.com, 21 August 2016.


 * The resistance media wing captured footage of a Saudi tank crashing into one of its own vehicles, while trying to flee the battlefield in the key city of Najran. Almasdarnews report, Aug 24, 2016.


 * HSV-2 Swift recovery images show extent of damage to #UAE operated vessel from claimed #Yemen #Houthi attack, twitter post, 5 Oct., 2016
 * Weapon: unknown; a twitter user suggested Chinese C 801 anti ship missile


 * Rusvesna report, video, 21 May 2017
 * Yemeni rebels-houthis shot down an F-15 fighter of the Air Force of Saudi Arabia with an air defense missile. It is reported that the military aircraft was struck over the province of Saada, but fell in the province of Najran. Both provinces are located on the territory of the KSA. The incident occurred on the day of arrival of Donald Trump on a visit to the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia. The US F-15 fighter was shot down by a Soviet anti-aircraft missile. Earlier, on May 18, in Yemen, the husits were shot down by a military helicopter of the Black Hawk Saudis ("Black Hawk"), also American-made. At least 13 servicemen were killed.


 * Reports: ex-president Abdala Saleh was killed, said to be by a sniper -al-Arabia twitter & photo, quoted by TASS, 4 Dec. 2017


 * Destruction of the American MQ-9 Reaper UAV in Yemen - Cassad, August 24, 2019, with Yemeni video and stills from the video. Shoot-down is at about 9:14 on the video. Also includes footage of an F-16; the story with that is unclear.


 * Houthis attacks - Cassad, July 11, 2020 (collection of videos).
 * Watch: Yemeni Forces Launch An Offensive On The Saudi Border Against Paid Mercenaries - Yemen Extra, August 11, 2020

Human rights claims against Houthis

 * Yemen: Houthi Hostage-Taking - Arbitrary Detention, Torture, Enforced Disappearance Go Unpunished Human Rights Watch, September 24, 2018
 * Al Houthis accused of hostage-taking, torture Gulf News, September 25, 2018
 * SAM Rights and Liberties
 * Yemen: Houthi Landmines Kill Civilians, Block Aid Human Rights Watch April 22, 2019

Bellingcat: The Yemen Project

 * The Yemen Project: ADE10001 – Fayoush Market Strike yemenproject April 22, 2019
 * Noted that Bellingcat refers to remnants of Hadi govt in Aden as the Yemeni Government without mentioning that this is contested or the national salvation government authorities in the capital Saana --Diagonal (talk) 15:02, 23 April 2019 (UTC)

See also their impossible account of the Aden airport rocket attack December 30 2020