Critical analysis of the happenings at Yemen
Yemen, officially known as the Republic
of Yemen is an Arab country
in Southwest Asia,
occupying the southwestern to southern end of
the Arabian Peninsula. It is
bordered by Saudi Arabia to
the north, the Red Sea to
the west, the Gulf of Aden and Arabian Sea to
the south, and Oman to the east. For much of the 20th Century, Yemen
existed as two separate countries - the Yemen
Arab Republic (YAR) in the north and the
People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY) in the south. In 1990, the
countries chose to unify and create the Republic of Yemen.
The Yemeni Crisis began
with the 2011–12 revolution against President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who had led Yemen for more than two decades. In recent months Yemen has
descended into conflicts between several different groups, pushing the country
"to the edge of civil war".
The main fight is between forces loyal
to the beleaguered President, Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, and those allied to Zaidi
Shia rebels known as Houthis, who forced Mr Hadi to flee the capital Sanaa
in February. Yemen's security forces have split loyalties, with some
units backing Mr Hadi, and others the Houthis and Mr Hadi's predecessor Ali
Abdullah Saleh, who has remained politically influential. Mr Hadi is also
supported in the predominantly Sunni south of the country by militia known as
Popular Resistance Committees and local tribesmen. Both President Hadi and the
Houthis are opposed by al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which has
staged numerous deadly attacks from its strongholds in the south and
south-east. The picture is further complicated by the emergence in late 2014 of
a Yemen affiliate of the jihadist group Islamic State, which seeks to eclipse
AQAP and claims it carried out a series of suicide bombings in Sanaa in March
2015.
Ansar Allah ("Supporters
of God"), known more popularly as the Houthis, are a Zaidi group operating in Yemen
(Zaidi is a branch of Shia Islam). The group takes its name from Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi, who launched an insurgency in 2004 and was reportedly killed by Yemeni army forces that
September. Led by Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, the group succeeded in overthrowing the
government in 2014–15 and, as of April 2015, retains control of
Yemen's capital, Sana'a, and the parliament. The group's
flag reads as following: "God is Great, Death to America, Death to
Israel, Curse on the Jews, and Victory to Islam". Yemeni and
Iranian officials say that the Houthis have received significant support from
Iran in the form of weapons, money and training since 2004, while Houthi leadership
denies having received weapons or financial support from Iran. According to a
February 2015 Newsweek report,
Houthis are fighting "for things that all Yemenis crave: government accountability, the end to
corruption, regular utilities, fair fuel prices, job opportunities for ordinary
Yemenis and the end of Western influence.”
The Sectarien violence in Yemen is on Increase.
The main dispute have now shifted towards the two communities, the Shia And the
Sunni with the Houthi’s supporting the Shia’s and the ISIS, and the supporters
of Hadi from the Sunni beliefs. With Shia’s gaining power in the Arabian
Peninsula , The ISIS have involved itself in this crisis and have done some
serious attacks in which hundreds have been killed. During this conflict, the Houthi’s have succeeded in capturing
the Sanaa ( Capital of Yemen ) and the parliament and have thrown
government out . Meanwhile Hadi has declared Aden as the provisional capital.
In the next part of this series we will visualize what is India's role in this and how Army cheif got fame by foreign media but commented by Indian media.
Also Read:
SSB Lecturette series: ISIS - A threat to Humanity : Part 1
SSB Lecturette series: ISIS - A threat to Humanity : Part 2
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About the Author:
Siddharth Joshi is an
Electronics & Communication Engineer working in a renowned MNC. His interests include travelling and he
loves playing every sport. Through this article he
wants to help defense aspirants by presenting his critical views on the
topic, on the forum so that collective exchange of thoughts can take place.
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My doubt is that, then in which side does the current president Ali Abdullah Saleh stands? Is he a Sunni believer or Shia? And if he is against the former Pres Mr. Hadi, then Y was the conflict arose against him?
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