Although far from the frontlines of Yemen’s civil war, Al-Mahra governorate remains an important battleground for Gulf powers competing for influence in the conflict. A Saudi military buildup in Al-Mahra, purportedly aimed at slowing the flow of Houthi-bound weapons from Iran, reached a tipping point in February when fighting broke out over the mounting restrictions on cross-border trade. The clashes immediately preceded the appointment of a new governor who has been less divisive than his predecessor and has found some…
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Second Forum on Local Peace Building Efforts in Shabwa and Al-Mahra concludes
(Addis Ababa, Ethiopia) The second Shabwa and Al-Mahra Strategic Forum, hosted by the Sana’a Center for Strategic Studies and the Oxford Research Group, was held February 1 – 3, 2020 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia. The forum discussed methodologies for strategic planning and mechanisms to bolster peace efforts on a national level in Yemen, and in…
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Forum on Local Peace Building Efforts in Shabwa and Al-Mahra concludes
The first Shabwa and Al-Mahra Strategic Forum, hosted by the Sana’a Center for Strategic Studies and the Oxford Research Group, was held December 4 - 6, 2019 in Addis Ababa, Ethiopia.
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The March on Al-Mahra
The reasons the Yemen War began are fundamentally different from why it continues today. All parties to the war – local, regional, and international – have exploited the chaos and collapse of the state to pursue their own vested interests. Among these: powerful actors in the armed Houthi movement have accrued vast sums of wealth…
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Yemen’s Al-Mahra: From Isolation to the Eye of a Geopolitical Storm
Mahri Tribesmen and local protesters, who had been demonstrating against Saudi forces seizing control of the al-Ghaydah City airport in al-Mahra governorate, celebrate after reaching an agreement with Saudi officers to return the airport to civilian control, July 13, 2018. The Saudi forces later reneged on the deal. Text & photos by Yahya al-Sewari Edited…
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