Violence erupts in Yemen again: why it matters globally and how it is linked to the US-Iran war

Summary

The article reports renewed fighting in Yemen between the Iran-aligned Houthi movement and forces supporting Yemen’s internationally recognized government, which is backed primarily by Saudi Arabia and other Arab states. The violence has reportedly killed or wounded about 1,000 people and displaced tens of thousands, according to the World Health Organization. The Houthis control Sana’a and much of northwestern Yemen, while government-aligned forces hold parts of the northeast and the southern port city of Aden. Yemen’s civil war began in 2014 when the Houthis seized Sana’a and eventually displaced the government, prompting a Saudi-led military intervention in 2015. A UN-mediated truce beginning in 2022 largely reduced fighting, but negotiations weakened after the October 7, 2023 Hamas-led attack on Israel and the subsequent war in Gaza. The Houthis then attacked shipping in the Red Sea, drawing U.S. military involvement and increasing their regional influence. The article says renewed Houthi offensives, Saudi strikes, and government efforts to retake territory have reopened several fronts, including areas near the strategic Bab al-Mandab strait. It estimates that Yemen’s wider war has killed at least 150,000 people directly, displaced about 4.5 million, and left more than 18.2 million needing humanitarian assistance.