Global Courant 2023-04-11 23:36:21
Saudi and Omani delegations have held talks with Houthi officials in the Yemeni capital of Sanaa as Riyadh seeks to end its military involvement in the latest chapter of conflict in Yemen’s modern history.
The following is a timeline of Yemen’s slide into conflict:
1990: North and South Yemen united into one state under President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
1994: In a civil war, Saleh prevents South Yemen — angry at what it perceives as its lower status — from splitting with North Yemen.
2003-2009: A Houthi group in North Yemen protests the marginalization of the local Zaydi Shia Muslim sect and wages six wars with Saleh’s forces and one with Saudi Arabia.
2011: Arab Spring protests undermine Saleh’s rule, split the army and allow al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) to seize territory in the east.
2012: Saleh resigns in a political transition plan supported by the Gulf states. Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi becomes interim president, overseeing a national dialogue to create a more inclusive, federal constitution.
2013-14: AQAP launches attacks across Yemen. The Houthis take the capital Sanaa in September 2014 with the help of Saleh and demand a share of power.
2015: Hadi tries to announce a new federal constitution, opposed by Iran-affiliated Houthis and Saleh, who arrest him. He escapes, pursued by the Houthis.
Saudi Arabia, leading a coalition, intervened in March, driving out the Houthis and Saleh loyalists from Aden in South Yemen and from Marib, northeast of Sanaa. The front lines are firming up and heralding a stalemate for years to come.
2016: AQAP establishes a mini-state around Mukalla. The UAE supports local forces in a battle that ends AQAP rule there.
Hunger grows as the coalition imposes a partial blockade on Yemen, claiming that Iran is smuggling missiles to the Houthis, which Iran denies. Coalition airstrikes that kill civilians prompt warnings from human rights groups, but Western support for the military campaign continues.
2017: The Houthis fire a growing number of missiles deep into Saudi Arabia.
Saleh switches sides but is killed trying to escape from the Houthis.
2018: Coalition-backed forces advance along the Red Sea coast against the Houthis, aiming to take the port of Hodeidah, which handles the bulk of Yemen’s trade and aid imports. A military standoff ensues.
Peace talks are held in Sweden, the first in two years, and the warring parties agree a ceasefire and a withdrawal of troops from Hodeidah. Work on a prisoner exchange begins.
2019: Hodeidah ceasefire largely holds, but withdrawal fails to materialise. Violence continues elsewhere.
The UAE is largely ending its presence while still supporting local allies, including southern separatists who take Aden in August.
Riyadh negotiates a power-sharing deal between separatists and Hadi’s government, but implementation will not begin until 2020.
2020: Saudi-led coalition announces ceasefire over COVID-19, but no progress is made in forging a permanent ceasefire and violence continues, though warring factions do agree to a prisoner exchange complete.
At least 22 people are killed in an attack on Aden airport shortly after a plane carrying the newly formed power-sharing government lands. The government of Riyadh and Hadi blames the Houthis.
2021: U.S. President Joe Biden revokes U.S. “terrorist” place on the Houthis while ending U.S. support for offensive coalition operations.
The Houthis are stepping up an offensive to take gas-rich Marib, the government’s last stronghold in North Yemen.
UN and US envoys are trying to broker a permanent ceasefire and reopen air and sea links with the Houthi areas, but the warring factions resist a compromise. Saudi Arabia and Iran begin direct talks, mostly focused on Yemen.
2022: Houthis expand missile and drone attacks into UAE after Emirati-backed local militias fight the group in power-producing Shabwa and Marib. Coalition fighter jets bomb Yemen.
The US is acting to bolster military capabilities of allies in the Gulf amid strained relations and increasing Houthi attacks on Saudi oil facilities.
President Hadi hands over power to a presidential council in April, while Riyadh acts to strengthen the anti-Houthi alliance.
The warring parties reach an agreement on a ceasefire in April, which has been extended twice and expires in October with no agreement on extension. But there is a cautious calm.
2023: In March, Saudi Arabia and Iran agree to restore relations, raising hopes that the Yemen peace process can move forward.
In April, Saudi and Omani envoys visit Sanaa to negotiate a permanent ceasefire with the Houthis.
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