Publications

The Yemen Review February 15, 2024 42:27 MIN The Yemen Annual Review 2023 Peace talks between Saudi Arabia and the Houthi group (Ansar Allah) dominated Yemeni politics over the last year. The negotiations began as backchannel discussions in October 2022 after the Houthis resisted UN pressure to renew a truce first agreed in April 2022 by making a series of eleventh-hour demands. The talks continued despite Houthi attacks on oil terminals in southern Yemen in late 2022 that effectively put the internationally recognized government under a form of economic blockade. As the months progressed, the government’s increasingly dire economic situation pressured it to accept the Saudi policy of seeking a settlement with Houthi authorities, seemingly at almost any price. The broad terms of a Saudi-Houthi agreement first became public in January, when international… Continue reading News February 12, 2024 01:51 MIN Sana’a Center Briefs Diplomats in Riyadh As Red Sea Conflict Widens A delegation of experts from the Sana'a Center for Strategic Studies recently returned from a diplomatic mission to Saudi Arabia, where they briefed representatives from 16 embassies to Yemen. The meetings focused on addressing the recent escalation in the Red Sea and its impact on the United Nation’s roadmap to peace, the distribution of humanitarian aid, and Yemen’s faltering economy. During the February 7-8 visit to Riyadh, Sana'a Center experts brought expertise on a wide array of topics — from Houthi motives to local economic conditions — to meetings with ambassadors to Yemen from Australia, Canada, France, Japan, Saudi Arabia, South Korea, Turkey, the United Kingdom, and the United States. They also briefed diplomatic staff from the embassies of Denmark,… Continue reading Main Publications January 31, 2024 04:37 MIN Women’s Public Participation in Yemen by 2030: A Scenario-Building Approach By Dr. Maryam Alkubati The prolonged war in Yemen has had dire consequences for gender equality in the country, as evidenced by the republic’s poor performance in the Global Gender Gap Index. In 2021, Yemen was ranked 155th out of 156 countries. The country’s overall economic participation and opportunity for women holds a low global standing, positioned at 154th, underscoring the challenges faced by Yemeni women in the workforce amidst the conflict. Educational attainment continues to rank poorly at 152nd. The health indicator, evaluated mainly on the sex ratio and life expectancy at birth, as well as healthy life expectancy, reflects broader gender disparities, ranked at 95th. Political empowerment for women remains extremely limited, with Yemen ranked 154th, highlighting the extensive political marginalization of… Continue reading Analysis January 12, 2024 08:04 MIN US and UK Strike Houthi Targets in Yemen: Reaction from Sana’a Center Experts By Abdulghani Al-Iryani, Maysaa Shuja Al-Deen, Hussam Radman, Maged Al-Madhaji, and Bilqees Al-Lahbi The United States and Britain carried out air and missile strikes against Houthi targets in the early hours of January 12, following two months of Houthi attacks on commercial shipping in the Red Sea. The maritime attacks caused major shippers to reroute, disrupting international commerce and threatening a new round of global inflation. The airstrikes appear to have struck targets in Sana’a, Sa’ada, Hajjah, Hudayadh, and Taiz governorates. Houthi authorities said five people were killed and six wounded, and vowed to continue Red Sea operations as long as Israel’s war on Gaza continues. The United States has accused Iran of providing the military capabilities and intelligence behind the Houthi attacks. The US-UK action was supported militarily by Australia, Bahrain, Canada,… Continue reading Main Publications December 31, 2023 38:18 MIN Cultivating an Equitable Recovery: A Political Ecology Approach to Agricultural Interventions in Yemen By Maia Baldauf, and Musaed Aklan Yemen faces grave ecological risks and agricultural challenges that imperil its long-term stability if left inadequately addressed. The multi-disciplinary analytical framework of political ecology – which examines the intersection of environmental, economic, and socio-political factors, and how power dynamics impact control and access to resources – can be employed to better inform context-specific solutions in recovery assistance. An understanding of Yemen's development history, agricultural modernization, and localized political ecologies is essential for aid and development interventions to be more effective, relevant, and equitable, and to avoid harm. Through a desk review of literature, key informant interviews, an expert discussion, and a survey on local perceptions of agriculture projects in 14 governorates, this study sheds light on Yemen's pressing challenges and… Continue reading Editorial December 27, 2023 03:45 MIN November and December 2023 Red Sea Conflict Gambles with Yemen’s Future With a series of drone and missile attacks targeting Israel and international shipping in the Red Sea, the Houthis seem to have succeeded in their long-held ambition to exercise regional power. The scale and impact of Houthi operations seems to have surprised some observers, who still tend to dismiss the group despite its survival through almost a decade of war against a US-backed Saudi and UAE military campaign. It’s hard to deny that Houthi operations are gaining them plaudits across the Arab and Muslim world. While it’s not surprising that the authorities in Sana’a can mobilize thousands of people for weekly demonstrations in solidarity with Gaza, even domestic adversaries are praising the group. As one senior pro-government military commander recently… Continue reading Yemen Review section December 27, 2023 13:34 MIN November and December 2023 Red Sea Attacks Provoke International Response The Houthi group (Ansar Allah) has thrust Yemen into the international limelight and put regional politics in turmoil with an escalating series of high-profile attacks on Red Sea shipping. The Houthis have launched dozens of drones and missiles at ships since October and captured the commercial ship Galaxy Leader in a striking airborne commando raid (see Military section). Declaring solidarity with the besieged Palestinian inhabitants of Gaza, the Houthi leadership has now threatened to attack any ships heading to Israel until the Israeli military offensive ceases. Major shipping lines and oil companies are now diverting their vessels round the Cape of Good Hope, as the West and regional powers consider their response. The Houthis first fired on ships soon after… Continue reading Yemen Review section December 27, 2023 09:07 MIN November and December 2023 Houthi Strategy Evolves in Red Sea Attacks What was a surprising and uncharacteristic series of attacks by Houthi forces in the Red Sea in late October has now evolved into a highly coordinated naval offensive as Houthi forces continue to target Israeli-affiliated ships and territory, along with commercial vessels strategic waterway. Since the start of the conflict in Gaza in early October, Houthi forces have launched more than a dozen missile and drone barrages, hijacked a ship, and disrupted major international shipping routes by forcing companies to divert thousands of kilometers around the Cape of Good Hope – posing the question of if and when Israel and/or allied forces will retaliate. Houthi strategy in the Red Sea region has witnessed several minor yet important shifts that affect… Continue reading Yemen Review section December 27, 2023 11:23 MIN November and December 2023 Houthi Red Sea Attacks Increase Shipping Costs By Wadhah Al-Awlaqi The seizure of an Israeli-linked ship by Houthi forces in the Red Sea and repeated attacks on commercial shipping threaten to pile additional pressure on Yemen’s economy by raising the costs of imports. Shipping to Yemen already incurs increased transport and logistics costs due to its designation as a “high risk” area. According to a 2021 UNDP assessment, war premiums, covering the potential loss or damage to vessels, resulted in insurance costs for shipping to the port of Aden port to be 15 times the regular rate. These additional insurance costs, totaling more than US$20 million per year, are ultimately borne by Yemeni consumers. While the full economic ramifications on shipping to Yemen following the Houthi seizure of the Galaxy… Continue reading Yemen Review section December 27, 2023 08:29 MIN November and December 2023 War Passing Over Women’s Bodies By Thuraya Dammaj War innately ruins all that is civil within society, crashing economies, dismantling political systems, and invalidating human rights. In Yemen’s conflict, women are seeing their rights stripped away faster than any other group. For decades, feminist movements in Yemen achieved significant progress. The Women’s League was one of the first civil society groups organized after South Yemen became an independent state in 1967, and it subsequently had a major impact on the young nation’s policy design. Women helped draft legal circulars that increased the minimum age of marriage, required women’s consent for marriage, protected women from domestic violence, gave women the right to apply for divorce, and automatically granted divorced women custody of their children. By 1990, South Yemen had… Continue reading Yemen Review section December 27, 2023 06:43 MIN November and December 2023 From Mountain Fighters to Red Sea Disruptors: What the Houthi Attacks Mean for Yemen, the Region, and Global Stability By Eleonora Ardemagni Increased Houthi attacks against maritime and coastal targets have generated an escalating series of national, regional, and international problems. Indeed, the maritime warfare that the Houthis have undertaken since 2016, with attacks rising in frequency and complexity since the start of the Israel-Hamas war in October, has four interconnected implications. First, it deprives the internationally recognized government of oil revenues. Secondly, it undermines the rebuilding of the Yemeni Coast Guard. Third, it keeps neighboring Saudi Arabia on constant alert and poses a security threat to its oil infrastructure and Vision 2030 giga-projects. Fourth, it jeopardizes freedom of navigation in the southern Red Sea, which is rapidly changing the way the international community perceives the threat from Houthi-controlled territories as attacks… Continue reading The Yemen Review December 27, 2023 6 Sections The Red Sea Front – The Yemen Review, November and December 2023 Executive Summary Houthi military action in the Red Sea escalated dramatically during November and December, as the group announced the creation of a ‘third front’ against Israel in retaliation for its war in Gaza and military operations along the Lebanese border. Isolated attacks in October, nominally undertaken in solidarity with the besieged residents of Gaza, have mutated into a sustained campaign, with Houthi leaders now threatening to enforce a blockade of all ships headed to Israel through the area. Dozens of missile and drone strikes against maritime traffic have pushed the major shipping and oil companies to reroute their vessels. The attacks have been a public relations coup for the Houthis, who filmed the dramatic hijacking of the cargo ship… Continue reading