Vol. 3 No. 1&2 (2015): CISS Insight Quarterly News & Views, March - June 2015
Articles

Yemen Conundrum

Mr. Sajid Aziz
Research Officer at the Center for International Strategic Studies (CISS)
Bio
Published July 28, 2015
How to Cite
Mr. Sajid Aziz. (2015). Yemen Conundrum. CISS Insight Journal, 3(1&2), P65-78. Retrieved from https://journal.ciss.org.pk/index.php/ciss-insight/article/view/154

Abstract

It all started in January 2011 with protests and demonstrations, organized predominantly by youth to demand civic rights and the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who had been ruling Yemen for far too long, since 1978. ‘Change Square’ was adorned outside Sana University; youth in Ta’iz set up a ‘Martyr Square’ outside their university, both inspired by and patterned on the model of movements sweeping Egypt and Tunisia. ‘The night to come to an end’ was a conspicuous slogan emblazoned on placards and entrances to these squares. Saleh, who was notorious for courting external powers and had turned the knack of ‘divide and rule’ into a sophisticated art which he knew like the back of his hand, refused to comply with the genuine political demands, unleashing the wrath of his security forces on the peaceful protesters. As the peaceful protests grew, they were joined by a whole slew of groups and classes: aggrieved tribes disenfranchised Houthis, Hirak (Southern Movement), civil society activists and youth. Government responded with brute force. ‘Martyr Square,’ which had then become ‘Freedom Square,’ was burned in Ta’iz. More than fifty protesters were mowed down in Sana in March 2011. The ensuing anarchy was soon turning the movement that was to enkindle a new dawn into a long night of chaos. Houthi took control of Saa’da in north Yemen and made the government forces and its aides to flee; while Islamists took charge of the southern town of Jaar. Moreover, infighting within the ruling elite further deteriorated the precarious security situation. Sana which had earlier hosted peaceful protesters, marching and rallying their demands, was turned into a war zone where Republican Guard headed by Ahmed, Saleh’s son, and other government forces loyal to Saleh battled Hashid tribe. Saleh himself was wounded and later airlifted to Saudi Arabia. Meanwhile, the people of Yemen took a heavy toll. The lull that the GCC‐brokered ‘peace’ deal brought was merely a prelude to a more macabre and grotesque civil war. As the transition government of Hadi failed to live up to the promises it had committed itself during the negotiations, people again took to the streets. Houthi after routing their rivals in north, closed in on Sana, capital of Yemen, practically controlling it but in name only. As public support for the transition government plummeted, further undermining the credibility of the government, Houthi militias took control of Sana.