UN

As direct Saudi-Houthi talks inch toward a roadmap for comprehensive negotiations followed by a permanent ceasefire, it is crucial that the process of resolution be based on a firm footing. We do not need to look far back into Yemen’s past to appreciate the danger of losing the peace, when missteps in the delicate diplomatic dance that brings de-escalation and…

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…

Reports of bilateral peace talks between Saudi Arabia and the armed Houthi movement have been trickling out since last October, and their recent confirmation in media reports has fueled widespread optimism and speculation. The talks should be welcomed as a step toward ending Yemen’s disastrous war. But to establish a lasting peace, they must quickly expand to include representation of…

Houthi restrictions on women’s rights have become increasingly oppressive in recent months. Retrograde efforts to control women are ever more common, most conspicuously through the procedure of requiring the approval of a male guardian, or mahram, for all manner of activities. The mahram can be any male member of the family, including the father, husband, brother, or even a young…

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.…

Yemen received some rare good news in September when the UN announced it had finally reached the threshold (retroactively reduced from $80 to $75 million) to begin the first phase of the operation to salvage the FSO Safer. Despite the expiration of the truce, preparations surrounding the FSO Safer operation appeared to continue in early October. Although weather conditions improved…