Dhirubhai Ambani International Model United Nations 2019

Forum: Security Council

Issue: The Question of the

Student Officer: Dhruva Sankhe

Position: Deputy President

Introduction

Yemen, an Arab country bordered by Saudi Arabia in the North and Oman in the East, has been devastated by a cataclysmic internal conflict. is an Islamic country, with around 56% of its population being Sunni and 44% being Zaidi Shi’s. Sectarian and separatist tendencies among the various groups present in the country has always been prominent, but reached another level during the Revolts of 2011.

In 2014, a Shi’a insurgent group from the north of Yemen, the so-called Houthis (officially Ansar Allah), gained territorial foothold by capturing the Yemeni capital of Sana’a. The Houthis had long since been a group actively fighting for more recognition of the rights of minorities in the Yemeni state – what enabled them to so effectively gain ground in 2014 is that they joined forces with former president Saleh, who remained politically important and still has many loyal friends in the army.

The Houthis took the capital, put President Hadi, the political leader of Yemen at the time, under house arrest, and imprisoned many members of the government. In early 2015, Hadi, along with many other leading politicians resigned, whereupon the Houthis dissolved the government completely and announced plans for an “interim government”, supposed to rule for two years. Internationally, the Houthi’s claim is not recognised. Hadi, who fled to the coastal city of and has since been calling for his reinstallation as the rightful president, remains the internationally recognised .

On 23rd May 2015, direct neighbour-state Saudi Arabia, itself an overwhelmingly Sunni country, announced “Operation Decisive Storm” to combat Houthi advancements. This involved amassing its own troops along the shared border, and founding a military coalition comprised of Saudi Arabia, Egypt, Qatar, Bahrain, Kuwait, the UAE, Egypt, Pakistan, Jordan, Morocco, and Sudan. This coalition, under the lead of Saudi Arabia, has been carrying out bombing runs on

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Dhirubhai Ambani International Model United Nations 2019 large patches of land, perceived to be controlled by the Houthis. Neither a ceasefire nor an end to the hostilities is in sight, and the downward spiral in Yemen continues thus.

The humanitarian situation in Yemen is critical at the moment due to the conflict. According to Amnesty International, around 4600 civilians have been killed and 8000 injured in the conflict mainly by bombings of the Saudi coalition. About 18.8 million people in Yemen rely on humanitarian aid.1

The conflict in Yemen has much broader international implications than apparent at first. Saudi Arabia and Iran have long since been interlocked in a power struggle in the Middle East – Saudi Arabia fear the possibility of a Shi’a government in Yemen, and tries its best to stop the Houthi advance. Iran on the other hand, a Shi’a country, are accused of supporting the Houthis financially and logistically. Though Iran vehemently denies this, these observations serve to incorporate the Yemeni civil war into a much bigger picture, into a much bigger conflict. Concerns on international side are manifold as well: Yemen controls the Bab al-Mandab strait, through which a large part of the world’s oil trade passes – a Houthi takeover could mean great economic uncertainty thus. Also, Yemen is home to the AQAP (Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, officially Ansar al-Sharia), the biggest and most volatile branch of Al-Qaeda. Due to the biggest armed forces in the country tied in conflict, AQAP has steadily been gaining ground in Yemen, along with their ever – encroaching influence. Thus this conflict continues to threaten the political stability and internal security of Yemen as well as cause widespread destruction of life and resources.

Definition of Key Terms

AQAP2

The militant Islamist group al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, which was formed in January 2009 through a union of the Saudi and Yemeni branches of al-Qaeda.

1 “YEMEN WAR: NO END IN SIGHT.” Amnesty International, www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2015/09/yemen-the- forgotten-war/.

2 “Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).” Council on Foreign Relations, Council on Foreign Relations, www.cfr.org/backgrounder/al-qaeda-arabian-peninsula-aqap.

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Houthi3

The Houthis are key players in an alliance of rebels formally known as Ansar Allah — or "Partisans of God" — who follow Shiite Islam. Their name comes from Hussein Badr al- Din al-Houthi, who led an uprising in 2004 aimed at winning greater autonomy for provinces and protecting them from the perceived encroachment of Sunni Islam.

Zaidi4

A member of an Islamic sect of Yemen that constitutes one of the three major branches of Shi'a, recognizes a continuing line of imams descended through Zaid who is the fifth imam, and is closest to sunna in its doctrine.

President Hadi

Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi is a Yemeni politician who has been the President of Yemen since 27 February 2012, and was Vice President from 1994 to 2012. He is a part of the General People’s Party.

Sanaa

The largest city in Yemen and the centre of Sanaʽa Governorate. The city is not part of the Governorate, but forms the separate administrative district of "Amanat Al-Asemah".

Sectarian conflict

Sectarian violence is conflict between and among groups with a specific ethnicity or religion, stemming from religious and ideological differences.

Shi’a5

A member of one of the two main branches of Islam comprising sects believing in Ali and the Imams as the only rightful successors of Muhammad and in the concealment and messianic return of the last recognized Imam.

3 “Who Are the Houthi Rebels Accused of Attacking Navy Ships near Yemen?” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, www.nbcnews.com/news/world/who-are-yemen-s-houthis-what-do-they-want-n665636

4 “Zaidi.” Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster, www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Zaidi.

5 “Shia.” Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster, www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Shia.

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Sunni6

A member of one of the two major branches of Islam, the branch that consists of the majority of that religion’s adherents. Sunni Muslims regard their denomination as the mainstream and traditionalist branch of Islam, as distinguished from the minority denomination, the Shīʿites.

Background Information

Geopolitical Situation

Yemen is located on the southwest corner of the Arabian Peninsula, across from the Horn of Africa. With Saudi Arabia to the north and Oman to the east, Yemen’s land borders are largely isolated by the Empty Quarter, a vast, uninhabited desert that stretches through the region. Across the Red Sea, Ethiopia, Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia are linked to Yemen by trade, religion and culture. From its vantage point on the Red Sea and the Gulf of Aden, Yemen overlooks one of the world’s biggest trade routes. Yemen’s geographic challenges, then, are threefold. First, the country must ward off foreign encroachment on its exposed southern flank. Second, it must find a way to manage its increasingly scarce resources. And third, must keep the influence of the AQAP under control.

Yemeni Revolution

The started in 2011 following the revolutions in Tunisia and Egypt. In January 27th, mass protests took place in Sana’a against corruption, high unemployment rates and the fear that Yemeni President would pass on the presidency to his son. These were followed by other major protests in other cities around the country. After promises from Saleh not to run for presidency again nor pass on power to his son failed to 12 calm down protesters, demands for Saleh’s ouster began to rise throughout the country, resulting in deadly clashes between protestors and government forces. This resulted in mass government resignations and defections from the military. On June 3, an explosion targeting top governmental officials resulted in Saleh’s injury. He then fled to Saudi Arabia to be treated and Vice President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi temporarily took over power. After several failed negotiation rounds with opposition leaders, Saleh finally agreed in November to transfer his power to Hadi in February 2012 in exchange for immunity for him and his family. On February

6 Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Sunni.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 3 Oct. 2018, www.britannica.com/topic/Sunni.

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21st, Hadi was elected president in a single-candidate election that would keep him in power until 2014.

Houthi takeover of Sana’a

The Houthis are a Shia tribe that reside in Yemen’s north. Since the start of the Yemeni revolution they have been a critical part of the opposition. Their insurgency originally started in 2004. In 2011, in the midst of the anti-government demonstrations, they have taken control of Dammaj, a city in the country’s north. They were not satisfied by Saleh’s power handover to his vice president Hadi and boycotted the presidential election in 2012. Triggered by a huge cut to oil subsidies in 2014 as a part of Hadi’s economic reform program they decided along with other Sunni tribes from the north to launch armed offensives against the government and successfully occupied parts of Sana’a in a few days. Unsatisfied by a proposal to split the country into six federal regions, they seized the presidential compound in January 2015 forcing Hadi’s government to resign and relocate to Aden. On the 6th of February, they formed the Supreme Revolutionary Committee as an interim government and dissolved the parliament. The committee would then form the new parliament which would subsequently appoint a presidential council to rule the country. Neither the Revolutionary Committee nor the presidential council have been recognized internationally.

Saudi-led Coalition

Sana’a’s takeover by the Houthis poses a great threat to Saudi Arabia’s influence and security in the area. They are affiliated with Iran and therefore pose a national security threat to Saudi Arabia. The Saudi-led coalition was formed in March 2015 as a response to the Houthis’ takeover of Sana’a. It consists of nine African and Middle East countries including Egypt, the United Arab Emirates and Jordan. They have also been supported by the United States, providing intelligence, logistical support and accelerating weapon sales. The main aim of their first operation, named ‘Decisive Storm’, was halting the advances of the Houthis in the North by launching an air campaign and declaring a naval blockade on all ports controlled by the Houthis. They have also deployed ground troops on the Saudi-Yemen border to construct attacks on Houthi controlled areas and halt any suspected Houthi interventions into Saudi Arabia’s borders. The operation lasted almost two months targeting Houthi strongholds, airports and supply routes. They have also aided Hadi’s government defending against Houthi military advances 13 in the south. The Saudis have been heavily criticized by human rights organizations for neglecting civilian casualties. The operation was then officially suspended on the 21st April 2015 as it has fulfilled its purpose of eliminating threats to the kingdom, according

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Dhirubhai Ambani International Model United Nations 2019 to Saudi Arabia. However, airstrikes have continued since then and the naval and air blockade were not lifted.

Influence of al-Qaeda

The other major player in Yemen is Al Qaeda, also called Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). It is the most active Al Qaeda branch worldwide. They control a large part of Yemen and therefore their influence in the country should not be underestimated. In 2009, the Al Qaeda branches of Yemen and Saudi Arabia merged in Yemen. However, they have only succeeded in gaining control of several parts of the country in 2011 taking advantage of the unrest caused by the revolution. Supported by drone strikes ordered by then US President Barack Obama in 2012 the Yemeni government were able to halt their advances towards Sana’a and Aden. Their leader Nasser Al-Wuhayshi has been killed in a drone strike in October 2015. The drone strikes have also increased since Donald Trump has been elected president of the United States. The AQAP have also been involved in armed conflicts against Houthi forces due to the ideological differences between the two fractions.

Economic Impact

Yemen, one of the least developed Arab countries, is highly dependent on declining revenues from its relatively small oil and gas reserves. The complex and intense civil war has generated a humanitarian crisis and exacerbated economic problems, unemployment, and shortages of food, water, and medical resources. Here are a few of the reasons why the economy has been devastated. Economic policymaking has been concentrated primarily on marshalling limited fiscal resources to meet public salary payments and continue the conflict. The absence of a dynamic private sector has resulted in chronic unemployment and a large informal sector, and this has only been aggravated by the war. The combined value of exports and imports is equal to 333.5% of the GDP, and average tariff rate applied is 4.3 percent. Even through this end Yemen aren’t generating nearly enough. The ongoing civil war has also severely degraded the country’s capacity and infrastructure related to international trade and investment. Yemen’s economy is largely cash based. The limited financial system is dominated by the State, and the banking system is fragile. With its economy in tatters, Yemen is heavily dependent on international aid.

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Humanitarian Situation7

The humanitarian situation in Yemen has been worsening ever since the war started. It has been called a catastrophe by UN officials. Since the fighting began in March 2015, more than 7000 people, including women and children, have been killed whereas tens of thousands have been injured. Due to the heavy air campaign by the coalition forces, more than 2 million people have been displaced. 17 million people are scarce of basic food supply and more than 14 million lack access to clean water. A huge cholera outbreak has also hit Yemen, mainly in Houthi controlled territories. More than 800,000 cases are suspected since the outbreak began in April. Due to the coalition’s blockade and the Houthi’s inefficiency, the outbreak has been hard to control despite UN and NGO aid efforts.

Current Situation

The Hadi government is currently the only government in Yemen that is recognized by the UN and the majority of the international community. The government resides in Aden in the south of the country. Recently; however, Hadi’s advances against Houthi forces have been halted as he has been facing a power struggle from southern Yemeni politicians who have called for an independence referendum. Their forces have recently clashed shifting the focus away from the Houthis. The Saudi-led coalition have continued their support for the Hadi government and are still launching airstrikes against Houthi controlled areas.

The Houthis and former president Ali Abdullah Saleh have formed a partnership to govern the country since Hadi’s resignation and currently reside in Sana’a. In September 2017, the Houthis have accused Saleh of negotiating with Gulf states and have replaced several of his ministers with Houthi officials causing a rift in their partnership. Nevertheless, the Houthi-Saleh forces have recently acquired advanced anti-air capability, probably assisted by Iran, which can strongly aid their fight against the coalition air strikes.

As the AQAP began to lose territory due to the aggressive drone campaign by the US, they have shifted their strategy from a full-frontal war to targeting specific officials and Imams mainly in Aden and Taiz. Due to an Emirati-backed counter terrorism campaign they have lost influence over several cities and villages in southern and eastern Yemen.

7 http://www.securitycouncilreport.org/atf/cf/%7B65BFCF9B-6D27-4E9C-8CD3- CF6E4FF96FF9%7D/a_hrc_30_31.pdf

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Major Countries and Organizations Involved

AQAP

The most influential branch of Al-Qaeda, an extremist militant organization. Al-Qaeda has been present in Yemen since early 2000s with American forces repeatedly targeting Al Qaeda organized operations in Yemen. Once the Civil War broke out in 2015, Al-Qaeda managed to use the confusion created by the conflict and capture the city of Mukalla, and has used the city as its base of operations. The city has since been recaptured by Hadi forces in 2016, however pockets of Al-Qaeda forces still exist and are active participants in the conflict. The terrorist organization is one of the main concerns in the conflict due to their use of terror tactics and prevalent radicalistic ideology. So far Al Qaeda has targeted both sides in bombing campaigns and open conflict, and is a serious threat to the stability of the region.

Iran

While Iran’s involvement equates to a small percentage of that of the GCC and its allies at best, it is the Houthis’ primary international backer. Iran has increased support for the Houthis, having originally only given verbal support, they have now also started backing up the Houthis with military support, including arms. Hadi also blamed Hezbollah, Iran’s Lebanese ally, of supporting the Saleh-Houthi alliance. Many regional specialists caution against overstating Tehran’s influence over the movement, especially because Iranians and Houthis adhere to different schools of Shia Islam. All the while, the Houthis and Iran share comparable geopolitical goals: the Houthis are the principal rival to Hadi’s Saudi- and U.S.-backed government and Iran attempts to challenge US and Saudi pre-eminence in the region.

Saudi Arabia

A military intervention was launched by Saudi Arabia in 2015, leading a coalition of nine African and Middle East countries, to influence the outcome of the Yemeni Civil War in favour of the government of President Hadi. The intervention initially consisted of a bombing campaign on Houthi Rebels and later saw a naval blockade and the deployment of ground forces into Yemen. The Saudi-led coalition has attacked the positions of the Houthi militia and loyalists of the former President of Yemen, Ali Abdullah Saleh, allegedly supported by Iran, in response to a request from the internationally recognized government of President .

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The Hadis

The Hadi government fled from Sana’a and is currently established in Aden. Hadi himself fled the country in 2015 when Houthi forces entered Aden however, once Saudi Arabia intervened and re-took the city, Hadi returned and has remained there. The government is currently supported by the Saudi intervention and backed as the official government on Yemen.

The Houthis

The Houthis started in the late 1980s as a cultural and religious movement among believers of Zaydi Shi’ism in northern Yemen. The Zaydis are a minority in Yemen, but prevalent in the northern highlands, where Zaydi imams ruled much of the region until 1962. Zayid is a different school of Shi’a than that practiced in Iran. In 2003, Saleh decided to back the U.S.- led invasion of Iraq. At this point the Houthis turned into a political militia. The Houthis fought the Saleh regime intermittently until the Arab Spring. In 2009, they also fought the intervening Saudi forces. The grew due to its criticism of the UN-backed transition and was able to expand beyond its original northern area. Former President Saleh has become more popular with the Yemeni citizens due to the deteriorating hope of a strong new government. Both Saleh and his son have the loyalty of some parts of Yemen’s military, tribal networks, and large parts of the General People's Congress (GPC) political party. Nonetheless, the Saleh-Houthi alliance is purely tactical. Saleh’s loyalists oppose Hadi’s government as they lost power due to the transition and the Houthis likewise do not support the new government. Saleh was killed in December 2017 after he had changed his mind and wanted to establish links to Saudi Arabia. Violent clashes broke out between the Houthi armed groups and military supporters of Saleh. The situation is getting more complicated.

United States of America

The United States originally backed the Saudi-led coalition reluctantly, conjoint with the UK and France. U.S. interests involve securing the Saudi borders and creating stability in Yemen. An important economic goal for the U.S. is the free passage through the Bab al- Mandeb, the connection between the Arabian and Red Seas, which is used to move millions of barrels of oil daily. Another fundamental goal for the U.S. military programme is the insurance of a government in Sana’a that will cooperate with U.S. counterterrorism programmes. In Washington, a growing chorus of analysts and politicians has called on the United States to step up, withdraw U.S. support for the Saudi war effort, and turn the UN-brokered cease-fire into a lasting peace. Doing so is the only morally and strategically defensible course of action. But of

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Dhirubhai Ambani International Model United Nations 2019 all the options before the United States, this one is the least likely to stop the destruction of the civil war, and the complications for U.S. economic interests in the Yemeni region.

United Kingdom

The UK considers itself one of the largest donors to aid the Yemen humanitarian missions, having spent Sterling 130 million last year for aid. However, it sold weapons worth USD 3.3 billion to Saudi in the same year– over 25 times that which it spent for humanitarian causes. More alarming even, is that some of the cluster bombs used by the Saudi alliance have been determined to be of British origin. While Britain would be violating the Convention on Cluster Munitions, neither the US, Saudi Arabia nor Yemen have signed or ratified the document. After this information came to light, the Saudi alliance switched from British to Brazilian cluster bombs. Due to the predicted British recession on account of Brexit, analysts doubt whether the May administration will stop selling weapons to the Saudi coalition. A court of appeal in London, on 20th June, 2019 has declared this sale of weapons unlawful due to the Yemen conflict. Action needs to be taken to stop this.

Timeline of Events

Date Description of event

18th December, The Arab Spring begins. 2010

June 2011 Protests become prominent in Yemen.

November 2011 President Saleh gives governing power to his deputy, Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi.

February 2012 President Hadi inaugurated as president after uncontested elections.

January 2014 The National Dialogue Conference creates a new constitution .

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July 2014 Houthi rebels destroy the country's largest oil pipeline, severing supplies from the interior to a Red Sea export terminal.

September 2014 Houthi rebels take control of the capital, Sana’a.

February 2015 President Hadi flees to Aden after Houthis reject the constitution, Houthis appoint presidential council to replace President Hadi.

March 2015 Islamic State carries out its first major attacks in Yemen - two suicide bombings targeting Shia mosques in Sanaa, in which 137 people are killed.

March 2015 GCC airstrikes start after Hadi asked for their assistance.

June 2015 Leader of al-Qaeda in Arabian Peninsula, Nasser al-Wuhayshi, is killed in a US drone strike in Yemen.

April 2016 UN talks between the government and Houthi coalition.

October 2016 Airstrike by Saudi-led coalition hits a crowded funeral in Sanaa, killing 140 mourners and injuring 500.

January 2017 US commando raid kills 14 AQAP militants; children of the militants were also killed.

June-Nov 2017 Outbreak of cholera kills 2,100 and affects almost 900,000 others, according to medical agencies’ reports.

December 2017 Former president Ali Abdullah Saleh is reported killed after fierce fighting in the capital Sanaa.

January 2018 Southern Yemeni separatists - backed by the United Arab Emirates - seize control of Aden.

November 2018 UN seeks to negotiate a cease-fire, after months of fighting around the key Houthi-held port of Hudaydah and a mounting humanitarian crisis. Research Report | Page 11 of 15

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Past Resolutions

● UNSCR 2014- 21 October, 2011: This was the resolution endorsing the GCC initiative for a peaceful transition of power. ● UNSCR 2051 – 12 June, 2012: This resolution focused on the second phase of the transition and expressed the Council’s readiness to consider further measures, including under Article 41 of the Charter. ● UNSCR 2140 – 26 February, 2014: This resolution expressed the Council’s strong support for the next steps of the political transition and established sanctions against those threatening the peace, security or stability of Yemen. ● UNSCR 2201 – 15 February, 2015: This was a resolution that strongly deplored the Houthis' actions to dissolve parliament on 6 February and take over government institutions and urged the acceleration of negotiations to reach a consensus solution regarding the political impasse. ● UNSCR 2204 – 24 February, 2015: This was a resolution renewing the assets freeze and travel ban until 26 February 2016 and extending the mandate of the Panel of Experts until 25 March 2016. ● UNSCR 2216 – 14 April, 2015: This resolution demanded the Houthis to withdraw from all seized areas and to relinquish all seized arms, and established an arms embargo on the Houthis and forces loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh. ● UNSCR 2266 – 24 February, 2016: This was a resolution renewing the Yemen sanctions measures until 26 February 2017, and the mandate of the Panel of Experts until 27 March 2017. ● UNSCR 2342- 23 February, 2017: This resolution renewed the Yemen sanctions regime. ● UNSCR 2402 – 26 February, 2018: This resolution extended the sanctions regime further. ● UNSCR 2451 – 21 December, 2018: This resolution endorsed the agreements reached by the parties during the consultations held in Sweden, and authorised the Secretary- General to establish and deploy, for an initial period of 30 days an advance team to begin monitoring and facilitate implementation of the Stockholm Agreement. ● UNSCR 2452 – 16 January, 2019: This established the UN Mission to support the Hodeidah Agreement (UNMHA) for an initial period of six months. ● UNSCR 2456 – 26 February, 2019: This resolution extended for an additional year the Yemen financial and travel ban sanctions, reaffirmed the provisions of the targeted arms embargo, and renewed the mandate of the committee’s Panel of Experts.

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Possible Solutions

Holding talks with concerned parties and convincing the Houthi rebels to negotiate and follow the political transition process established after the resignation of Saleh. Viable, but further escalation of tensions can have a huge negative impact.

A UN Verification Inspection Mechanism can be established to check thoroughly the security of the ‘humanitarian aid’ sent in across borders by Saudi Arabia and Iran. This is an extremely viable solution. Negotiating a ceasefire can be an effective first-step in preventing conflict escalation and facilitate circulation of humanitarian aid and supplies to affected civilians. Cons: the ceasefire isn’t followed through. Certain actions need to be taken to ensure that doesn’t happen. A long-term solution is holding new elections, and starting an awareness campaign to convince people of the fact that all the religious groups can stay together in harmony without disturbing the peace of the region. However it is imperative that proper measures are taken to ensure safe, secure, and fair elections. Setting up a committee to look into the validity of holding elections in Yemen, and also providing technical assistance to election officials, empowering the underrepresented to participate in the political process, applying field-based research to improve the electoral cycle. Cutting out the influence of extremist organizations in the region by using deradicalization programs to prevent further escalation of the conflict. Looking into economic solutions to avert the humanitarian crisis, by increasing the supply and lowering costs of basic commodities, and facilitating private sector trade. However it is important to ensure no circulation of arms takes place, and security measures are taken. This is very viable, and will help stabilise the economy to some extent.

Bibliography

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iv. “Who Are Yemen's Houthis?” Council on Foreign Relations, Council on Foreign Relations, www.cfr.org/interview/who-are-yemens-houthis. v. Deutsche Welle. “Yemen's War Explained in 4 Key Points | DW | 10.08.2018.” DW.COM, www.dw.com/en/yemens-war-explained-in-4-key-points/a-40056866. vi. al-Mujahed, Ali, and Karen DeYoung. “Saudi Arabia Launches Air Attacks in Yemen.” The Washington Post, WP Company, 25 Mar. 2015, www.washingtonpost.com/world/middle_east/report-yemens-embattled-president-flees- stronghold-as-rebels-advance/2015/03/25/e0913ae2-d2d5-11e4-a62f- ee745911a4ff_story.html?noredirect=on&utm_term=.da04e54fbdaf. vii. Nordland, Rod. “Rebels in Yemen Say They Intend to Form a New Government.” The New York Times, The New York Times, 6 Feb. 2015, www.nytimes.com/2015/02/07/world/middleeast/yemen-rebels-say-they-will-dissolve- parliament.html?_r=0. viii. “Shia.” Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster, www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Shia. ix. “Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP).” Council on Foreign Relations, Council on Foreign Relations, www.cfr.org/backgrounder/al-qaeda-arabian-peninsula-aqap. x. Britannica, The Editors of Encyclopaedia. “Sunni.” Encyclopædia Britannica, Encyclopædia Britannica, Inc., 3 Oct. 2018, www.britannica.com/topic/Sunni. xi. “Who Are the Houthi Rebels Accused of Attacking Navy Ships near Yemen?” NBCNews.com, NBCUniversal News Group, www.nbcnews.com/news/world/who-are- yemen-s-houthis-what-do-they-want-n665636. xii. “Zaidi.” Merriam-Webster, Merriam-Webster, www.merriam-webster.com/dictionary/Zaidi. xiii. “Sunnis and Shia: Islam's Ancient Schism.” BBC News, BBC, 4 Jan. 2016, www.bbc.com/news/world-middle-east-16047709. xiv. “Yemen | UN News.” United Nations, United Nations, news.un.org/en/focus/yemen. xv. “Special Envoy Yemen | Department of Political and Peacebuilding Affairs.” United Nations, United Nations, dppa.un.org/en/mission/special-envoy-yemen. xvi. “Yemen.” OHCHR, www.ohchr.org/EN/Countries/MENARegion/Pages/YEIndex.aspx. xvii. “World Report 2019: Rights Trends in Yemen.” Human Rights Watch, 17 Jan. 2019, www.hrw.org/world-report/2019/country-chapters/yemen. xviii. “Humanitarian Crisis in Yemen Remains the Worst in the World, Warns UN | UN News.” United Nations, United Nations, news.un.org/en/story/2019/02/1032811. xix. Arab, The New. “Timeline: After Two Years of War, Yemen in Crisis.” Alaraby, The New Arab, 26 Mar. 2017, www.alaraby.co.uk/english/indepth/2017/3/26/timeline-after-two- years-of-war-yemen-in-crisis.

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xx. “YEMEN: An Economic Strategy to Ease the Humanitarian Crisis.” Carnegie Council for Ethics in International Affairs, www.carnegiecouncil.org/publications/articles_papers_reports/yemen-an-economic- strategy-to-ease-humanitarian-crisis. xxi. “Southern Yemen Leaders Launch Body Seeking Split from North.” Reuters, Thomson Reuters, 11 May 2017, www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-south/southern- yemen-leaders-launch-body-seeking-split-from-north-idUSKBN18724T. xxii. Al Jazeera. “Yemen: Houthi, Saleh Council Formation Criticised by UN.” News | Al Jazeera, Al Jazeera, 29 July 2016, www.aljazeera.com/news/2016/07/yemen-houthi- saleh-council-formation-criticised-160728194157722.html. xxiii. “Yemen's Houthis Form Government in Setback to Peace Process.” Reuters, Thomson Reuters, 28 Nov. 2016, www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen-security-government/yemens- houthis-form-government-in-setback-to-peace-process-idUSKBN13N1ZQ. xxiv. Dehghan, Saeed Kamali. “Six Major Saudi-Led Coalition Attacks in Yemen in 2016 – Timeline.” The Guardian, Guardian News and Media, 7 Sept. 2016, www.theguardian.com/world/2016/sep/07/six-major-attacks-in-yemen-in-2016-by-saudi- led-coalition-timeline. xxv. “YEMEN WAR: NO END IN SIGHT.” Amnesty International, www.amnesty.org/en/latest/news/2015/09/yemen-the-forgotten-war/. xxvi. “Al-Qaeda Is Losing Ground in Yemen. Yet Is Far from Defeated.” The Economist, The Economist Newspaper, 10 June 2017, www.economist.com/middle-east-and- africa/2017/06/10/al-qaeda-is-losing-ground-in-yemen-yet-is-far-from-defeated. xxvii. Saul, Jonathan. “Exclusive: Iran Steps up Support for Houthis in Yemen's War - Sources.” Reuters, Thomson Reuters, 22 Mar. 2017, www.reuters.com/article/us-yemen- iran-houthis/exclusive-iran-steps-up-support-for-houthis-in-yemens-war-sources- idUSKBN16S22R.

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