For decades now, the Yemeni people have suffered from bad governance, underdevelopment and prolonged civil conflict.
During the past year, Yemen’s pain has been compounded by a devastating air war.
Last week, the New York Times ran an editorial under the headline “Hints of an End to the Fighting in Yemen”. The hints were that recent meetings between the Saudi government and elements of Yemen’s rebel leadership had concluded with announcements of a prisoner exchange, a ceasefire due to come into effect on April 10 and peace talks planned for April 17 in Kuwait. The assessment of some analysts was that the paper might be overly optimistic, but there is at least some hope that Yemen may be turning a corner.
While there have been other periods of upheaval in Yemen’s past, the recent chapter began in the aftermath of the unrest that rocked the country after the Arab Spring. Yemen has been a desperately poor country that, even in the best of times, had been politically unstable. There have been tribal conflicts and a conflict between the north and south, and it has been home to a branch of Al Qaeda. The decades-long administration of Ali Abdullah Saleh, once heralded as a model “emerging democracy” had ossified and become corrupt with rampant nepotism.
As the country convulsed, the GCC and the UN attempted to stabilise the situation by making modest reforms in the governance of Yemen. The agreement they reached led to the removal of Mr Saleh, replacing him with Abdrabu Mansur Hadi.
Mr Hadi laid out a reform agenda that Mr Saleh worked to obstruct. It was at that point that the government was overthrown by a band of rebels in coalition with elements of Yemen’s army who had remained loyal to Mr Saleh.
As the rebels moved southward, Saudi Arabia and its GCC partners became concerned. They were angered that the compromise they had worked to achieve had been undone. What heightened their upset were the boasts coming from some in Iran who claimed that Tehran now had a presence in four Arab capitals (Baghdad, Damascus, Beirut and Sanaa).
While there had been some debate as to the extent of Iranian support for the Houthi takeover, the Iranian claims and reports of shipments of arms and supplies to Sanaa created a reality that Saudi Arabia would not ignore or tolerate.
Already reeling from the perception that Iran had become an ascendant power in Iraq and from Iran's political and military involvement in supporting the Assad government in Syria, the Saudis were determined to draw the line in Yemen.
Compounding their concern were the P5+1 negotiations with Iran over that country's nuclear programme. Saudi Arabia and other GCC countries feared that this process would not only result in a nuclear agreement, but would legitimise Iran in the eyes of the West, end sanctions and free up billions of dollars, providing the Iranians with resources to pursue their quest for regional hegemony.
And so a year ago, a Saudi-led coalition began air strikes with the intention of turning back the Houthi rebellion and restoring the government of Mr Hadi.
The past year has been especially devastating for Yemen. According to United Nations statistics, over 6,000 people have been killed, 30,000 wounded and two-and-a-half million have been internally displaced.
Because of Yemen's difficult and unwelcoming terrain and the fact that it is bordered on two sides by water, there is nowhere for refugees to go. More than 20 million Yemenis are in dire need of humanitarian care, including 19 million who lack clean water and sanitation, 14 million who lack health care, and more than two million (of whom 300,000 are children) who face severe malnutrition. Taking advantage of the chaos, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has expanded its reach in the country.
And so, it can only be hoped that the hints are in fact more than just hints. That the warring sides have come to the conclusion that this madness must end and that negotiations will usher in a process of political compromise and national reconciliation.
At this point, the real agenda for Yemen will not only include political reform and a unifying of Yemeni and regional forces to defeat Al Qaeda, but reconstruction and a major international effort, led by the GCC and the US, to address the fundamental needs of Yemen’s long suffering people.
Dr James Zogby is the president of the Arab American Institute
On Twitter: @aaiusa
Kanguva
Director: Siva
Stars: Suriya, Bobby Deol, Disha Patani, Yogi Babu, Redin Kingsley
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
Started: 2020
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
Based: Dubai, UAE
Sector: Entertainment
Number of staff: 210
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
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Disclaimer
Director: Alfonso Cuaron
Stars: Cate Blanchett, Kevin Kline, Lesley Manville
Rating: 4/5
Living in...
This article is part of a guide on where to live in the UAE. Our reporters will profile some of the country’s most desirable districts, provide an estimate of rental prices and introduce you to some of the residents who call each area home.
Three tips from La Perle's performers
1 The kind of water athletes drink is important. Gwilym Hooson, a 28-year-old British performer who is currently recovering from knee surgery, found that out when the company was still in Studio City, training for 12 hours a day. “The physio team was like: ‘Why is everyone getting cramps?’ And then they realised we had to add salt and sugar to the water,” he says.
2 A little chocolate is a good thing. “It’s emergency energy,” says Craig Paul Smith, La Perle’s head coach and former Cirque du Soleil performer, gesturing to an almost-empty open box of mini chocolate bars on his desk backstage.
3 Take chances, says Young, who has worked all over the world, including most recently at Dragone’s show in China. “Every time we go out of our comfort zone, we learn a lot about ourselves,” she says.
Nayanthara: Beyond The Fairy Tale
Starring: Nayanthara, Vignesh Shivan, Radhika Sarathkumar, Nagarjuna Akkineni
Director: Amith Krishnan
Rating: 3.5/5
The 10 Questions
- Is there a God?
- How did it all begin?
- What is inside a black hole?
- Can we predict the future?
- Is time travel possible?
- Will we survive on Earth?
- Is there other intelligent life in the universe?
- Should we colonise space?
- Will artificial intelligence outsmart us?
- How do we shape the future?
Company%20Profile
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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: Almnssa
Started: August 2020
Founder: Areej Selmi
Based: Gaza
Sectors: Internet, e-commerce
Investments: Grants/private funding
The specs
Engine: 1.5-litre turbo
Power: 181hp
Torque: 230Nm
Transmission: 6-speed automatic
Starting price: Dh79,000
On sale: Now
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COMPANY%20PROFILE%20
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From Zero
Artist: Linkin Park
Label: Warner Records
Number of tracks: 11
Rating: 4/5
THE%20SPECS
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Citadel: Honey Bunny first episode
Directors: Raj & DK
Stars: Varun Dhawan, Samantha Ruth Prabhu, Kashvi Majmundar, Kay Kay Menon
Rating: 4/5
Company profile
Name: Fruitful Day
Founders: Marie-Christine Luijckx, Lyla Dalal AlRawi, Lindsey Fournie
Based: Dubai, UAE
Founded: 2015
Number of employees: 30
Sector: F&B
Funding so far: Dh3 million
Future funding plans: None at present
Future markets: Saudi Arabia, potentially Kuwait and other GCC countries
Kalra's feat
- Becomes fifth batsman to score century in U19 final
- Becomes second Indian to score century in U19 final after Unmukt Chand in 2012
- Scored 122 in youth Test on tour of England
- Bought by Delhi Daredevils for base price of two million Indian rupees (Dh115,000) in 2018 IPL auction
SUZUME
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Museum of the Future in numbers
- 78 metres is the height of the museum
- 30,000 square metres is its total area
- 17,000 square metres is the length of the stainless steel facade
- 14 kilometres is the length of LED lights used on the facade
- 1,024 individual pieces make up the exterior
- 7 floors in all, with one for administrative offices
- 2,400 diagonally intersecting steel members frame the torus shape
- 100 species of trees and plants dot the gardens
- Dh145 is the price of a ticket
The specs
Engine: Dual 180kW and 300kW front and rear motors
Power: 480kW
Torque: 850Nm
Transmission: Single-speed automatic
Price: From Dh359,900 ($98,000)
On sale: Now
INDIA SQUADS
India squad for third Test against Sri Lanka
Virat Kohli (capt), Murali Vijay, Lokesh Rahul, Shikhar Dhawan, Cheteshwar Pujara, Ajinkya Rahane, Rohit Sharma, Wriddhiman Saha, Ravichandran Ashwin, Ravindra Jadeja, Kuldeep Yadav, Mohammed Shami, Umesh Yadav, Ishant Sharma, Vijay Shankar
India squad for ODI series against Sri Lanka
Rohit Sharma (capt), Shikhar Dhawan, Ajinkya Rahane, Shreyas Iyer, Manish Pandey, Kedar Jadhav, Dinesh Karthik, Mahendra Singh Dhoni, Hardik Pandya, Axar Patel, Kuldeep Yadav, Yuzvendra Chahal, Jasprit Bumrah, Bhuvneshwar Kumar, Siddarth Kaul
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RESULTS
Light Flyweight (48kg): Alua Balkibekova (KAZ) beat Gulasal Sultonalieva (UZB) by points 4-1.
Flyweight (51kg): Nazym Kyzaibay (KAZ) beat Mary Kom (IND) 3-2.
Bantamweight (54kg): Dina Zholaman (KAZ) beat Sitora Shogdarova (UZB) 3-2.
Featherweight (57kg): Sitora Turdibekova (UZB) beat Vladislava Kukhta (KAZ) 5-0.
Lightweight (60kg): Rimma Volossenko (KAZ) beat Huswatun Hasanah (INA) KO round-1.
Light Welterweight (64kg): Milana Safronova (KAZ) beat Lalbuatsaihi (IND) 3-2.
Welterweight (69kg): Valentina Khalzova (KAZ) beat Navbakhor Khamidova (UZB) 5-0
Middleweight (75kg): Pooja Rani (IND) beat Mavluda Movlonova (UZB) 5-0.
Light Heavyweight (81kg): Farida Sholtay (KAZ) beat Ruzmetova Sokhiba (UZB) 5-0.
Heavyweight (81 kg): Lazzat Kungeibayeva (KAZ) beat Anupama (IND) 3-2.