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Houthis Face Mounting Criticism Over Harmful Pesticides
Following the widespread dissemination of leaked documents and a very public debate on the risks of agricultural pesticides, including accusations that Houthi leaders are involved in the trade of banned chemicals, Mahdi al-Mashat, the head of the group’s Supreme Political Council, addressed the thorny issue on May 19. Al-Mashat spoke during a … Read more
Yemen Annual Review 2022
The past year has been one of extreme consequence for Yemen. The war has entered a new phase of low-level violence and economic warfare. Casualties are down since a truce was signed in April, and have remained relatively low even after its acrimonious expiration in October. The internationally recognized government has sworn in a new executive … Read more
Truce Extended As Frontlines See Less Violence
Much as in April, the month of May saw the continued absence of heavy fighting in Yemen during the two-month UN-backed truce announced at the start of Ramadan. Frontlines remained stable, and there were few claims of heavy casualties in the clashes that did occur, although the Yemeni government and Houthi forces accused each other of truce … Read more
Ramadan Truce Largely Holding
Truces of various forms have come and gone in Yemen before. They have rarely lasted or been respected by the parties to the conflict, and sometimes have ended before even having begun. However, when a two-month truce came into effect at 7 p.m. local time on April 2, announced by the UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg, there was a sense that … Read more
The Curious Tale of Houthi-AQAP Prisoner Exchanges in Yemen
When Mohammed Ayidh al-Harazi was detained in Sana’a’s high-security prison for political detainees in 2011, he had little reason to believe he would be out any time soon. As a senior figure in Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) who had gone below the radar of authorities for several years, he was seized during the protests that swept Yemen … Read more