Houthi

Yemen Review section April 21, 2025 04:08 MIN January-March 2025 Into the Quagmire: Navigating US Policy in Yemen By Alexandra Nikopoulou Since the inauguration of the new US administration, Washington has adopted a fiercer stance against the Houthis, the last resilient pillar of the pro-Iranian Axis of Resistance. The Houthis are the only Iranian ally that have had their power increase in the conflagration with Israel. Their attacks against commercial shipping in the Red Sea were viewed as a global threat to freedom of navigation, prompting a US military reaction in 2024 that has escalated after the return of Donald Trump as president. Washington perceives the Houthis as an extension of Iran and attacks against them as an easy way to push the Islamic Republic toward negotiations on its nuclear program. However, his assessment makes dangerous assumptions about the Iranian-Houthi relationship.… Continue reading Yemen Review section April 21, 2025 07:35 MIN January-March 2025 The Woeful Plight of Yemen’s IDPs: A Tale of Two Towns By Sam Ali In mid-2015, Yousef and his extended family escaped from an aerial bombardment near his hometown, Al-Shareefiah, a village outside Haradh in northern Hajjah governorate. The 68-year-old head of a large household had found refuge in Hayran, a nearby district, hoping the airstrikes would stop soon so he and his family could return to their homes and large banana plantation. But air and ground attacks intensified in Haradh and nearby areas, including Hayran, where they were taking shelter. He and his family were soon on the run again. Now, nearly a decade since he abandoned his hometown, Yousef lives with his family in a makeshift camp for internally displaced persons (IDPs). They have never been able to return home, nor have… Continue reading Main Publications March 18, 2025 14:57 MIN Renewed US Bombing and Houthi FTO Designation Signal Shift in Yemen Conflict By Maged Al-Madhaji, Ned Whalley, Abdulghani Al-Iryani, Hussam Radman, and Salah Ali Salah US military forces recommenced strikes against Houthi targets in Yemen on March 15 as part of a new pressure campaign against the group and its primary backer, Iran. The bombing campaign, which so far has killed a reported 53 people and wounded more than 100, followed a Houthi threat to resume attacks against Israeli-linked vessels in the Red Sea in response to Israel cutting off aid to Gaza. US airstrikes so far have been reported in Sana’a, Sa’ada, Al-Jawf, Marib, Dhamar, Hudaydah, Al-Bayda and Taiz governorates. US officials said the strikes would likely last several weeks. Meanwhile, the Houthis have claimed several attacks against US naval ships. Shortly following the US escalation in Yemen, Israel resumed major bombing in Gaza,… Continue reading Main Publications February 5, 2025 27:58 MIN Houthi Detentions Leave Stark Choices for Aid Sector By Casey Coombs, and Ned Whalley On January 23, the Houthi group (Ansar Allah) detained seven UN staff members working in Sana’a. In response, the UN halted the movement of all staff working in Houthi-controlled territories as Secretary-General Antonio Guterres called for the UN workers’ immediate release. But the incident is just the latest in a string of disappearances and detentions of UN, NGO, and civil society staff in Yemen, who are often held without charge and denied contact with lawyers or family members. In the early summer of 2024, the Houthis began to forcibly disappear dozens of Yemeni civil society organization (CSO) and non-governmental organization (NGO) workers and UN staff. These detentions were soon accompanied by unsubstantiated charges of espionage and coerced televised confessions. The… Continue reading Editorial February 4, 2025 03:09 MIN October-December 2024 A Last Chance to Tackle Corruption Yemenis have always known that the country’s politics are riven with corruption, but there’s nothing quite like scandalous revelations in the press to bring the point home. Tensions between the prime minister and president and a prolonged standoff between two veteran bureaucrats seem to have been the catalyst for a flood of media leaks that have dotted the i’s and crossed the t’s for observers and ordinary citizens alike on the deep corruption afflicting the state. News media has published details from leaked official reports detailing corruption in the telecoms sector, lavish spending at the consulate in Jeddah and other diplomatic missions, and the establishment of a US$2.8 billion commercial entity in an Omani duty-free zone by state oil firm… Continue reading Yemen Review section February 4, 2025 11:08 MIN October-December 2024 Politics and Diplomacy — The Yemen Review, October-December 2024 By Casey Coombs In response to dramatic regional developments stemming from the Gaza war and domestic pressure inside Yemen, the Houthis (Ansar Allah) pivoted on several fronts. Houthi leader Abdelmalek al-Houthi quickly stepped in to fill the leadership vacuum atop the Axis of Resistance following the September 27 assassination of his Lebanese ally and mentor, Hassan Nasrallah, which severely weakened Hezbollah in its fight with Israel. Over the next eight days, Abdelmalek delivered three recorded speeches, one mourning Nasrallah, the second following a missile attack on Israel, and the third marking the anniversary of Hamas’s October 7 attacks. Abdelmalek argued that among Iran-allied groups, the Houthis are the most capable, most influential, and most willing and able to sustain losses on behalf of… Continue reading Yemen Review section February 4, 2025 09:21 MIN October-December 2024 Military and Security — The Yemen Review, October-December 2024 By William Clough The final months of 2024 – bookended by the assassination of Lebanese Hezbollah leader Hassan Nasrallah in late September and the announcement of a Gaza ceasefire in January 2025 – were undoubtedly a period of redefinition for Houthi military leadership, as the group once again shifted its strategy in targeting Israel, the United States, and their strategic interests in the Red Sea. While Houthi missile and drone barrages continued throughout the quarter, attacks shifted away from commercial shipping to focus instead on military bases and infrastructure within Israel itself. The decision to target Israel is not new – the Houthis made headlines in July after a drone crashed into a residential apartment near the US Embassy in Tel Aviv. Since… Continue reading Yemen Review section February 4, 2025 22:54 MIN October-December 2024 The Economy — The Yemen Review, October-December 2024 By Wadhah Al-Awlaqi, and Aylin Junga Yemen is experiencing a severe economic downturn as it tries to navigate long-term fiscal challenges. A World Bank report on Fiscal Vulnerabilities in Low-Income Countries released in late November highlighted Yemen’s dire fiscal situation as among the worst in the world. The World Bank’s Yemen Monitor for Spring 2024 noted that the current crisis is caused by plummeting oil and customs revenues, which had long been the backbone of Yemen’s economy. The government has also forcefully cut down fiscal expenditures, limiting the provision of essential services and jeopardizing sustainable economic development and growth. Despite attempts to address these challenges by centralizing financial control, the government’s fiscal health remains precarious. Many employees have received their salaries late. Limited Saudi support, tainted… Continue reading Publications January 22, 2025 26:32 MIN Forgotten Victims of Yemen’s War: The Plight of the Muhammashat By Mohammed al-Harbi Members of the muhammasheen community remain among the most vulnerable victims of systemic injustice and suffering in Yemen, a situation made worse by the war. Ostracized and disparaged, the community’s women and girls (muhammashat) are particularly vulnerable. The nature of their work, which commonly entails begging, street-sweeping, and vending, brings them into public spaces, putting them at risk of exploitation, including sexual and gender-based violence. As the upheaval of war in Yemen disrupts law enforcement and customary norms, and many men from this community have either lost their jobs or joined the frontlines, reports of muhammashat experiencing harassment and sexual abuse are on the increase while perpetrators continue to act with impunity. Based on interviews with local activists, researchers, lawyers,… Continue reading Main Publications January 6, 2025 31:12 MIN Mahrah University: Paving the Way for Workforce Transformation By Tawfeek Al-Ganad, and Lara Uhlenhaut For decades, Yemen’s higher education system has been characterized by a persistent mismatch between graduates’ skills and the changing requirements of the market. The last labor force survey carried out in 2014 showed that less than one-third of Yemen’s labor force had secondary or tertiary education, and a qualification mismatch was found among some 83 percent of the employed population. Yemen’s struggle to produce a skilled workforce can be attributed to many factors, including inflexible curriculums, outdated teaching methods, failure to adapt to technological advancements, and a lack of strategic vision for admissions and curriculum development. Undoubtedly, the historical absence of a unified and coordinated vision for higher education has been exacerbated by a decade-long war and its detrimental impact… Continue reading Yemen Review section October 16, 2024 06:49 MIN Quarterly: July-September 2024 Opening the Road to Besieged Taiz City: Easing Travel vs. Continued Hardship By Wissam Mohammed The strategic Al-Qasr road, connecting the heart of Taiz city to the eastern entrance of Al-Hawban, a major industrial area, was finally reopened on June 13, 2024, by the Houthi group (Ansar Allah). This development marked the end of a nine-year siege that had encircled Taiz from three sides. The reopening of the road has significantly alleviated the arduous journey for travelers to and from Taiz, who previously had to navigate treacherous, secondary roads winding around Jabal Sabir, the mountain that borders the city from the south. Previously, travel from the city center to the eastern part of Taiz could take up to six hours; now, the same journey can be completed in less than half an hour. Nevertheless, the… Continue reading Main Publications September 23, 2024 25:35 MIN Enhancing the Role of Microfinance Banks for Sustainable Impact in Yemen By Wadhah Al-Awlaqi Yemen's microfinance sector is undergoing a radical transformation. Despite initial success in empowering small businesses, the ongoing conflict has exposed deep vulnerabilities. Competition between the fractured central banks has driven a surge in microfinance bank (MFB) licenses. While this promises to expand financial inclusion, it raises serious concerns about long-term sustainability and financial stability. Several other factors are driving the transformation of existing money exchange companies into MFBs. These include the erosion of trust in the traditional banking system, the growth of the informal financial sector, and maneuvering by the exchange companies themselves. Additionally, lower entry requirements compared to conventional banks make becoming an MFB an attractive option. However, the surge in MFBs presents its own challenges. The divide in… Continue reading