Sections type: Politics & Diplomacy

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…

A Houthi delegation arrived in Riyadh for discussions with Omani and Saudi officials on September 14, the first time Houthi representatives have publicly visited the Saudi capital since the war in Yemen began. The bilateral talks now appear to be moving rapidly toward the announcement of an agreement. The Houthi delegation met with Saudi Defense Minister Khalid bin Salman, and…

The UN-led peace process has remained stalled since a formal truce expired without extension last October, and has since been superseded by direct bilateral talks between Saudi Arabia and the Houthi group (Ansar Allah). Nevertheless, the UN and US special envoys have continued to actively consult with the respective belligerents. On August 9, UN Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg…

The developing rift between Saudi Arabia and its coalition partner, the UAE, has come out into the open in recent weeks. The Wall Street Journal reported that Saudi Crown Prince and de facto ruler Mohammed bin Salman told journalists that the UAE had “stabbed them in the back,” and threatened to take direct action against its gulf rival. The deterioration…

April began with a flurry of activity in the ongoing bilateral talks between Riyadh and the armed Houthi movement, including a highly publicized visit by a Saudi-Omani delegation to Sana’a. But the month concluded without a signed agreement and uncertainty over the provisions of a deal. Saudi Arabia appears keen to conclude its disastrous military intervention in Yemen and is…

After weeks of little movement, the bilateral Saudi-Houthi talks appear to be headed toward agreement on a comprehensive ceasefire, though resolution of longstanding issues remains elusive. At month’s end, Saudi Arabia organized a meeting in Riyadh, framed officially as Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) President Rashad Al-Alimi summoning the leading figures of his government. After the Saudis met individually with each…

Hadramawt witnessed growing tensions in January, as protesters affiliated with the Southern Transitional Council (STC) demonstrated in the streets of Seyoun, demanding the replacement of Islah-affiliated 1st Military Region forces with locally recruited fighters. But the STC faced pushback for its unbridled efforts to extend its influence into the governorate. Powerful tribal blocs ordered them to leave, calling them a…

When the UN-backed truce expired on October 2, there was hope that it might be quickly reinstated, with negotiated agreements on outstanding issues such as the payment of public sector salaries and the reopening of roads. But efforts to restore the truce stalled in November. Despite multiple visits with regional officials by UN Special Envoy Hans Grundberg and US Special…

Direct Saudi-Houthi talks intensified in October, even while UN-backed efforts to reinstate and expand the truce that expired October 2 stalled and the Houthis and the Yemeni government escalated their words and actions. Riyadh and the Houthi authorities publicly exchanged delegations on October 12. While both sides portrayed these delegations as technical teams working toward a prisoner exchange, the Sana’a…

The truce between Yemen’s internationally recognized government and the armed Houthi movement, in place since April, was allowed to expire without renewal on October 2. The UN-facilitated agreement birthed the longest sustained period of relative peace since the conflict began, with a concomitant drop off in civilian casualties. September was dominated by fruitless negotiations to extend and expand the agreement.…