Environment

The governorate of Shabwa possesses a unique geography, ranging from fertile plains to long coastlines, mountain highlands, and vast deserts. It also holds rich natural resources, such as oil and gas. This natural wealth made it the site of the largest investment project in Yemen: the Balhaf liquefied natural gas (LNG) terminal. However, Balhaf and other hydrocarbon projects in the…

Over the past two years, Yemen's digital landscape has transformed into a battleground for legitimacy, control, and the shaping of public opinion. As the Houthi group (Ansar Allah) has intensified its campaign of arrests targeting local and international humanitarian workers, including United Nations (UN) and international non-governmental organization (INGO) staff, the social media platform X has emerged as a central…

Regional war has forced Gulf states to confront urgent questions about their security architecture. They require defensive capabilities and frameworks that extend beyond their borders, preserve their strategic autonomy, and allow them to press ahead with their ambitious development agendas. It also revives a question that Gulf capitals have long left unanswered: Can a sustainable regional security order be conceived…

This paper explores the significant yet often overlooked role of youth in Yemen’s transitional justice process. It is premised on the belief that any peace settlement must be accompanied by a transitional justice process to ensure its sustainability and to address all forms of injustice and violations that have occurred during the war. Crucially, it argues that any transitional justice…

The war against Iran by the US and Israel is unleashing chaos across the region. Since the launch of the joint military offensive in the early hours of February 28, Iran’s death toll has reached the thousands, and its Supreme Leader, Ayatollah Ali Khamenei, has been killed. Tehran’s retaliation continues to widen, with missiles and drones being fired at Israel,…

The war has fundamentally altered Yemen’s trade finance system, transforming it from a reliable, unified, bank-led mechanism into several divergent, conflicting structures that have made import financing cumbersome, costly, and unstable. The conflict has led to the suspension of oil and gas exports — the country’s primary source of revenue and foreign currency — and resulted in the division of…

Three weeks after Prime Minister Shayea al-Zindani was tasked with forming a government, a notably large cabinet was announced, comprising 35 ministers, including eight ministers of state (see full list and bios below). Since the start of the war, Yemen has seen successive changes in the premiership without corresponding changes in the government, and the formation of quota-based cabinets in…

Alliances are a common phenomenon in Yemen, deeply rooted in the country’s political life and social structures. Yemeni tribes, for example, often form alliances for protection and defense that are based more on mutual interests than on blood ties. This pattern extends into the political sphere, where Yemen has witnessed various types of political alliances during its modern history. This…

Yemen’s energy sector is currently facing a severe crisis. For millions of Yemenis, accessing reliable electricity is a daily struggle, characterized by prolonged blackouts, limited fuel supplies, and deteriorating infrastructure, which in turn exacerbate the country's humanitarian conditions. This policy brief underscores the importance of a just and conflict-sensitive energy transition in Yemen, addressing the interconnected challenges of conflict, economic…

“Respecting God's tenets, living in harmony, simplicity, and peace, and doing as our parents and grandparents did.” Socotra, a UNESCO World Natural Heritage site, has one of the most unique and isolated ecosystems in the world. Located off the coast of Yemen near the Horn of Africa, the Socotra archipelago sits at the crossroads of the Arabian Sea and the…