One of the salient features of recent Yemeni history has been the tension between the Houthi and Salafi movements. The Houthi movement – an armed group adhering to the Zaidi branch of Shia Islam – views the Salafis as an anti-Shia extension of Saudi Wahhabism, imported into modern Yemen from Saudi Arabia, while the Salafis – an ultraconservative branch of…

Because Yemen’s political parties are important to both Track I and Track II diplomatic negotiations and dialogue, it is possible to advance gender-inclusive approaches to peacebuilding by expanding their roles in decision-making and agenda-setting within their parties. This policy brief reviews the recent history of women’s partisanship and changes in the nature and function of Yemen’s political parties since 2011,…

Electricity is the backbone of any economy and one of the necessities of modern life. Since even before the current war, poor electricity services in Yemen have been one of the key barriers to sustainable economic development and basic service provisions, such as water supply, health care, and education. This policy brief presents an overview of the electricity sector and…

Marib governorate has emerged as a pivotal battleground between the armed Houthi movement on one hand, and the internationally recognized government and their respective allies on the other. The opposing forces are pressing with all of their might to achieve military victories in Marib, knowing that the outcome of the battle for the governorate holds the potential to decisively change…

Enormous quantities of relief items intended for those most in need are constantly being shipped across Yemen. These dispatches of food, medical supplies and other goods will arrive and be signed off by implementing partners — often government or Houthi authorities as well as aid organizations — who receive the items in their warehouses. What happens to them after dispatch…

The response in Yemen is called humanitarian, but is it really? And more importantly, does it need to be? A humanitarian response is understood to provide material support to those who have been affected by natural disasters and conflict. It is meant to be short-term, to ensure that people can survive until the disaster is over or governments or other…

On paper, Yemen is a principled humanitarian response, much like any other. Strategic documents from the past six years set out frameworks and codes of conduct that clearly reference the four fundamental principles that guide any response: humanity, neutrality, impartiality and independence as well as the principle of first do no harm. While the words exist on paper, they are far less evident in practice.