|
Follow the Middle East Forum
|
The
Saudi-Iranian Proxy War in Yemen
A briefing by Jonathan Spyer
April 30, 2015
The current Houthi uprising is but the latest phase in a prolonged internecine strife. Having long suffered discrimination and marginalization by the central government, this Zaidi Shiite group, about forty percent of Yemen's population, capitalized on the massive upheavals sweeping across the region since 2011 to help topple President Ali Abdullah Saleh. In subsequent years the Houthis steadily extended their control throughout the country and by January 2015, with Tehran's active aid and support, had unseated Saleh's successor, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, dissolved parliament, and established a revolutionary committee in its place.
The Yemen civil war has engendered a massive humanitarian crisis and political chaos that we are not going to see dissipate anytime soon. With Tehran exploiting America's aloofness to make inroads into this strategically-located country, and Riyadh vying to prevent another Arab state from falling under the Iranian aegis, would-be successor entities are being formed along sectarian lines in Yemen. The Obama administration's pending nuclear agreement with Iran and the effective collapse of the sanctions regime are certain to whet Tehran's expansionist appetite still further. Summary account by Marilyn Stern, Middle East Forum fellow |
|||||
To subscribe to the MEF mailing lists, go to http://www.meforum.org/list_subscribe.php |
No comments:
Post a Comment