NEED TO KNOWA Fight Over Yemeni Unity Is Splitting the Arabian Gulf ApartYEMENA decade ago, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates teamed up to conduct a military campaign against the Iran-backed separatist Houthis in Yemen, to restore the internationally recognized government’s authority but also to curb Tehran’s meddling so close to home. Yemen is now on the edge of another violent, unpredictable chapter, according to Farea Al-Muslimi of the London-based Chatham House. In 2014, allied with the ousted Saleh, the Houthis took over the capital and the north of the country. They have also operated a kidnap-ransom scheme targeting vessels sailing through the Red Sea that has earned them billions in revenue. Saudi Arabia also deployed its navy off Yemen’s coast even as Saudi-backed forces launched “a peaceful” ground offensive to retake areas from the UAE-backed southern separatists.

Source: The North Africa Journal January 15, 2026 13:57 UTC