A Beginners Guide To The Conflict In Yemen

Written specifically for my pal Francis Marion, a great thinker and learner who is always looking to increase knowledge, but who said he just doesn’t have the time to do research on the Yemen conflict. So, here ya go, as brief as I can make it. Brother, can ya spare 7 minutes?

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TWO YEMENS

— Yemen was a divided country for hundreds of years

North Yemen gained independence from the Ottoman Empire when it collapsed in 1918

—- North Yemen was then ruled by a Zaydi Shiite Imam. Zaydi Shiism is a branch of Shiite Islam found almost exclusively in Northern Yemen.

—- in 1962 the military staged a coup against the Zaydi monarchy.

—— the conflict lasted several years and essentially became a proxy war between Egypt (who supported the military) and Saudi Arabia (who supported the royalists).  The war ended in 1970.   The royalists and Saudis lost.

— Meanwhile, South Yemen gained its independence from British and Saudi rule in 1967.

—- South Yemen aligned itself with the Soviets (the only communist country in the Arab world).

—- North and South Yemen clashed for the next several decades

TWO YEMENS RELIGIOUSLY
Religious divisions in Yemen
ONE YEMEN under Ali Saleh (1990 -2011)

— The Soviet bloc disintegrated which led to the merger of North and South Yemen  in 1990

— The new ruler for unified Yemen was Ali Saleh, who prior was the ruler of North Yemen.

—- Civil war broke out in 1994.  South Yemen felt Saleh’s regime was marginalizing them.,  Saleh quickly squashed the opposition.

—- Saleh soon ran into more problems, this time right in North Yemen. Sheikh Hussein al-Houthi (1956 -2004) was a political and military leader.  He began a religious revivalist movement in the early 1990s.  His goal was to reassert traditional Zaydi Shiism which was losing ground to the fundamentalist Sunni (particularly Salafism) proselytizing supported by Saudi Arabia.  His followers and movement were called Houthis.

——– The Houthi movement eventually shifted from a religious bent to political. From wiki; — “In 2003 the Houthis’ slogan “The God is great, death to the US, death to Israel, curse the Jews, and victory for Islam”, became the group’s trademark.”  Between 2004 and 2010, there were six conflicts between Houthi rebels and Saleh’s government.

——– In September 2004, the Yemeni government announced that their military killed al-Houthi along with 20 of his followers. The Yemeni government creates a martyr.

REVOLUTION!!  (2011 – 2014)

— Inspired by the protests in Tunisia, tens of thousands of Yemenis took to the streets in January 2011, demanding Saleh’s resignation.  Saleh refused and many were killed.

— But, Saleh is forced to bow to domestic and international pressure and signed an agreement to cede power.  In Feb 2012 his vice president, Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi, takes over. The agreement was brokered by the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC), Saudi Arabia, and United States.

— The peace did not last long. Hadi lost control quickly.

—- There were al-Qaida attacks, the economy was tanking, southern Yemen wanted to secede again, and Houthi rebels were engage in brutal fighting with Hadi’s government. Attempts were made to broker a new constitution, but no one could agree on anything.

—- Yemen borrowed money from the IMF.  The IMF as part of the loan agreement demanded austerity measures. So, in 2004, Hadi announced cuts to fuel subsidies. The huge increase in fuel prices hit the mostly poverty stricken population very hard, and served to provoke the Houthi-backed protestors to further destabilize the government. Hadi rescinded the cuts, but the damage was done.

HOUTHI RULE  (2014 – 2015)

— Houthi rebels seize control of most of the capital, Sanaa, in September 2014.

— Hadi signs a U.N.-brokered peace with the Houthis to form a new, more inclusive government within a month.

—- By January 2015 the Houthis reject the new government and constitution. They place Hadi under house arrest but, Hadi is able to escape to Aden.

—- In February 2015, the Houthis dissolved parliament and formed a new transitional government.

——- The GCC, United Nations, and United States quickly denounce the coup.

—- In March 2015 Houthis expand their military campaign. They’re able to take over large parts of the country. Hadi flees to Saudi Arabia.

SAUDI INTERVENTION  (2015 – current)

— Saudi Arabia is Sunni.

— Yemen (the Houthi part)  is Shia.

— Iran (Shia) supports Yemen.

— Saudi Arabia hates Iran.

— Yemen (Houthis) / Iran (Shia) were winning.

— This was too much for the Sauds. So, they formed a military coalition with eight other Arab states.  But, the intelligence, arms, and logistical support came from the United States and England. The coalition began their airstrike campaign in March 2015 in order to defeat the Houtis and restore Hadi to power.

—- With overwhelming superiority in weapons, fire power, and support from the World’s Lone Superpower the Sauds thought the campaign would be over in a few short months. In over a year of bombing the coalition has made only minimal territorial gains.

YEMENS TODAY

— Yemen is functionally two countries, or governments; the Houthis in Sanaa, and Hadi in Aden.

— all the various brokered peace talks have gotten nowhere

— the Trump administration is siding with the Sauds, and wherever possible blaming the various war atrocities on Iran.  But, it is the coalition with bombs and airplanes, and there is zero doubt, as evidence exists, that coalition armaments have struck schools, hospitals, and civilian areas.

— 75% of Yemenis need some kind of humanitarian assistance to meet basic needs, about 8 million are at risk of starvation, cholera is becoming an epidemic, Riyadh is even preventing fresh bottled water from entering the country  … the country meets every definition of a failed state.

Related image

 

MY CONCLUSION

“He [Esau] will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be against everyone and everyone’s hand against him, and he will live in hostility toward all his brothers.” —- Genesis 16:12

The 5,000 year long conflict in the Middle East is not just between Jew and Arab.  It is also (and, probably, primarily) between Arab and Arab. Will things suddenly get better in 2018?  Sure, there have been periods of peace. But, it never lasts. Because Esau is a wild ass of a man. That’s not God talk. That’s history talk.

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Author: Stucky

I'm right, you're wrong. Deal with it.

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Iska Waran
Iska Waran

Fucken Esau! Never trust a guy who likes porridge.

AC
AC

The Iranians are Persians, not Arabs. This is the fundamental conflict in Islam – Persian vs. Arab; the religious differences stem from the ethnic differences.

John
John

Well said !!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!

Jack Lovett

Can you say oil. Or how to steal your neighbors oil.

Gerold

Excellent write-up, Stucky! Better than Cole’s Notes.

You’re right; the Middle East has been a bloodbath for 5,000 years, long before the rise of Islam and the resurrection of Israel. And, there’s no indication it won’t continue in the foreseeable future.

Martel's Hammer

Blast off and nuke the site from orbit. Cpl Hicks Aliens. The Saudis are the most heinous of them all…..at least the Persians have a history to be proud off and they suffer the most under the Mad Mullahs. A pox on all of the Musselmen…..shia and sunni.

StackingStock
StackingStock

Excellent summary Stucky,

And as usual, their’s always a fucking bank involved in the shenanigans.

Centurion44
Centurion44

If South Yemen would reject Russia and ally itself with Oman, things could change for the better in South Yemen. That’s if the sheik in Muscat would entertain an alliance with SY, after all they are Sunni. Saudi Arabia just might go along with this union.
Celebrate 8 June, because in 632AD someone poisoned Mohammad’s tea.

Anonymous
Anonymous

Sheesh! why is it so hard for us to mind our own business?
M C

Ghost

No one pounds out a bulleted list like you do, Stucky.

Ottomatik
Ottomatik

Stuck-your on a roll! Excellent write up. What I gather and your post reinforces, is that the conflict is essentially a proxy war between the Saud’s and the Persians. I mostly think we should stay out of it, but I feel the consternation the Saud’s must have with the Persians posting up on them like that, it’s probably better for the region if they stay on the other side of the gulf, no?
The Saud’s are an enigma for me, distasteful in a western sense, barbaric even, but they have done right by me and my family, and my community and country for decades. Possibly the best partner we have ever had, no shit, the best.
So I feel compelled to support them in some manner. Or at least, I am not enraged when we sell them high tech death weapons and train them in the use, seems fair.
Sending troops, to either Yemen, Syria, or even Iran, not, helping actually defend the Kingdom, yes.

Francis Marion

Stucky,

You wrote this up for me?

That’s one of the nicest things someone I’ve never met has ever done for me. Seriously.

Good springboard and got my mind rolling on a variety of fronts.

I haven’t thought too much about Yemen since I turned my attention to the ME. There’s only so much time in the day after running a business and chasing after busy teenagers. For one reason or another, I had written it off as being unimportant in what is transpiring right now. Looking at the dates and the players you provided I’m not so sure now. It’s another piece of the puzzle that I am overlooking.

I wonder how it fits? Or will fit???

Thanks again.

Zack
Zack

What does Esau got to do with Arabs?

Ghost

Isaac, father of Jacob and Esau, told his sons (of stolen birthright fame) not to marry any local girls. Those Canaan girls were not Abrahamic worthy.

Jacob hauled ass to find Rachel and Leah and begat a dozen boys supposedly representing the 12 tribes in some way and Esau married a wife from the children of Ishmael and he ended up with 12 tribes too, I think.

As a matter of Bible storytelling history, the Amalekites populated Canaan and Saul didn’t kill them all like he was supposed to, ended up dead with Jon and that brings us right to good King David, who was a really good man but had a bit of a roving eye and liked having his feet washed by Bathsheba.

A lot of children’s Sunday School stories come from Genesis. There is a certain myth and legend feel to Genesis, but the moral of that story always ends up badly for mankind: Sibling Rivalry and Bloody Murder are the main point, so the stories have to be cleaned up a bit for kids. Like the one about the 42 bears God sent to punish the kids for making fun of Elisha.

As an Origin Myth, Genesis leaves a lot to be desired. However, for archetypes and themes of sibling rivalry and envy, greed and murder, it is the place to go for ideas.

Zarathustra

I recall David being an asshole.

The Dude
The Dude

So Esau was an A••hole… A multi generational A••hole. I think Esau lost a bet with God.

Ghost

EC, if you are around and see this… Agnes says hello.

LGR
LGR

Welcome back.

Administrator

Zero Hedge just posted your article Stuck. Congrats.

YB
YB

CORRECTION: Please correct the Biblical quote to read “Ishmael” instead of “Esau.” You mistook the name. See Genesis Chapter 16 Verses 11 and 12.
11) And the angel of the Lord said to her, ‘Behold, you will conceive and bear a son, and you shall name him Ishmael, for the Lord has heard your affliction. 12) And he will be a wild donkey of a man; his hand will be upon all, and everyone’s hand upon him, and before all his brothers he will dwell.’
You are correct that the Arab nations consider Ishmael their forefather.

Ishmael
Ishmael

D’oh!

Mary Christine
Mary Christine

Is the the first time you have had an article posted on Zerohedge, Stucky?

GraphMaN
GraphMaN

The 5,000 year long conflict in the Middle East is not just between Jew and Arab; and not between Arab and Arab. It is between Semitic tribes, of which Jew and Arab are but two. There are over 70 Semitic tribes in the Middle East, including the Biblical Assyrians, who still are living community to this day with their own Semitic language (a dialect of Aramaic). Jesus spoke Aramaic, as did the Samaritans, another still living Biblical community. In many ways the Jewish Semites have joined the Saudi Semites, and the House of Windsor Semites (Jacob’s Stone is literally part of the British coronation throne), in fostering ISIS to rampage through the Middle East so they (Israel, Saudi Arabia, NATO) can obliterate competing Semitic tribes off the earth. Yes Israel and Turkey made fortunes from pirated oil as well. Their hatred of Syria is especially keen because Syria is ruled by Alawites, which are a tolerant syncretistic religion imbued with Islamic, Christian, and Judaic traditions, something that is a pungent monstrosity in their eyes.

BB
BB

It’s about time you starting confessing your sins although I kinda feel sorry for you living up there in the middle of all that diversity. God bless.

TampaRed
TampaRed

correction bb,he IS the diversity in that neighborhood–

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