June 19-25: HRW reveals torture of Yemenis in UAE-run prisons

Monday, June 19

Abdul-Raqib Saif Fath, Yemen’s minister of local administration, stated that Houthi forces and their allies have been blocking humanitarian aid from entering Yemen. The minister alleged that Houthi militias have previously burned trucks carrying humanitarian cargo, and in other cases they have allegedly blocked dozens of aid ships and have stolen aid supplies. These actions are regarded as violations of international humanitarian law and raise the concerns of the international community, the minister stressed.

June 12-19: Senate Resolution of Disapproval Nearly Passes; Airstrikes on Market Kill 25

Monday, June 12

The Intercept reported that the Trump administration made its argument in favor of an arms sale of over $500 million to Saudi Arabia in a top-secret briefing organized by Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell. Yemen Peace Project Advocacy Director Kate Kizer said of the meeting, “It’s really unfortunate that Senate majority leadership decided to hold this briefing in secret. Americans deserve to know the conduct of our allies, especially when the U.S. is intimately involved in starving potentially millions of Yemeni civilians by continuing to provide unconditional support to the Saudi-led coalition.”

May 30-June 5: Government blocks press access; intra-coalition skirmish in Aden

Tuesday, May 30

Adam Baron of the European Council on Foreign Relations writes about the state of affairs in southern Yemen, and listed three actions that European governments can take to help stabilize Yemen. The first is reaching out to the secessionists in the south of Yemen, and recognizing them as key players in the conflict. The second is to bolster law and order in the city of Aden.Finally, Europe should increase coordination with the Gulf States on both stabilization and mediation efforts.

May 23-29: Cholera on the rise, US kills civilians in Marib raid

Tuesday, May 23

The Associated Press reports that US special operations forces raided a suspected al-Qaeda hideout in the al-Sarim area of Marib Governorate. US Central Command claimed that at least seven militants were killed, possibly more. Later, it came to light that at least five civilians were killed, including an elderly man and a teenaged boy. It was the second publicly-acknowledged ground raid US forces have conducted in Yemen this year. The first, conducted in January, killed 25 civilians and sparked international outrage.

May 15-23: US signs arms deal with Saudi Arabia, pro-secessionist protest in Aden

Monday, May 15, 2017

PRI’s Stephen Snyder reports on Yemen’s current cholera outbreak, noting that the spread of the disease has been exacerbated by Saudi airstrikes on hospitals and blockades that block the flow of medical supplies into the country. The report also emphasizes that the disease is preventable and treatable, but that the destruction of civilian infrastructure and unpaid government salaries have made preventing and addressing outbreaks more difficult .

May 2-8: Tensions between Hadi and UAE, cholera outbreaks threaten public health

Tuesday, May 2, 2017

Reuters reports that Saudi deputy crown prince Mohammed bin Salman has said that the offensive on Hudaydah that Saudi Arabia wants to launch would have heavy casualties for both Saudi-backed forces and their Houthi adversaries. The Washington Post, meanwhile, discusses the concern among U.S. lawmakers over the possibility of an attack on the port city.

AP focuses on statements by Prince Mohammed bin Salman dismissing the possibility of dialogue with Iran as unrealistic and stating that Saudi Arabia would not wait “until there becomes a battle in Saudi Arabia, so we will work so that it becomes a battle for them in Iran….”

April 25-May 1: $1.2 billion raised by UN for humanitarian efforts, international community warns against Hudaydah offensive

Tuesday, April 25, 2017

UNICEF published a press release today urging the international community to donate to UN efforts to combat the humanitarian disaster in Yemen. The UN held a pledging drive today in Geneva to raise funding for humanitarian aid in the country. The drive raised a total of $1.1 billion, approximately half of the UN’s 2017 emergency response budget. The United States announced that it would provide an additional $94 million in humanitarian assistance to Yemen.

The United Nations, joined now by Russia as well, continues to warn the Saudi-led coalition against attacking the Port of Hudaydah. Amnesty International also released an article emphasizing the risk to civilian lives that such an offensive would carry. The UNHCR says that it is preparing for the potential displacement of an additional half a million people if the fighting in Hudaydah intensifies.

April 17-24: "Famine-like" conditions evident, aid organizations call for more funds to prevent catastrophe

Monday, April 17, 2017

According to the Emirates News Agency, the Emirates Red Crescent (ERC) will provide 53 Yemenis affected by the war with medical treatment at hospitals in India.

Gulf News reports that Yemeni government forces have gained control of a military base north of al-Mokha. Houthi-Saleh forces had used the base to launch missile attacks against coalition forces along the coast.

An article from AP focuses on the work of Fadia Najib Thabet, a student in Vermont who recently received the Secretary of State's International Women of Courage Award for her work as a child protection officer in southern Yemen.

April 11-16: WFP ramps up food aid to Yemen, Congress skeptical of supporting Saudi campaign

Tuesday, April 11, 2017

The UN said today that the risk of mass starvation is quickly growing in Yemen, as well as in South Sudan, Somalia and Nigeria.

Norwegian Refugee Council’s press release today calls Yemen an “extreme situation for women,” emphasizing the importance of focusing on women’s issues and rights as women have been increasingly politically marginalized since the start of the war.

April 4-10: Government forces position around Hudaydah, UN calls for protection of Port

Tuesday, April 4

Pro-Hadi forces in Yemen are gathering around the Port of Hudaydah and a senior military official reports that “only the timing remains to be decided” of an impending military operation in the area. It is possible that the Saudi-led coalition is waiting for approval from its Western allies before launching the offensive, according to Reuters. The International Rescue Committee, meanwhile, said that an attack on the port would have catastrophic effects on the Yemeni people.  

Meanwhile, CNN reports that US special operations forces have increased ground operations in Yemen in addition to the recent campaign of airstrikes in the country. The ground operations, which have not been publicly acknowledged by the Pentagon, are specifically aimed at covert intelligence gathering on al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), according to CNN.

March 27-April 3: US considers expanded military role in Middle East, UN special envoy calls for political solution in Yemen

Monday, March 27, 2017

The US is in the process of weighing a greater military role in Yemen through direct support for the Saudi-led coalition, Reuters says. This appears to be a response to evidence of greater Iranian military support for the Houthi-Saleh alliance.

At least 11 people were killed in a suicide bombing in al-Houta, Lahj province, according to Reuters. The attack is suspected to have been carried out by al-Qaeda militants.

Reuters also reports that rates of child marriage have significantly increased since the beginning of the war in Yemen, according to UNICEF. Over two thirds of Yemeni girls are now married before the age of 18, as opposed to half of girls before the conflict. This large increase is primarily due to families’ inability to feed their children as famine looms closer in the country.

March 14-19: Somalia calls for investigation, tensions grow within coalition

Tuesday, March 14, 2017

President Trump met with Saudi Deputy Crown Prince Mohammad bin Salman today for talks that are likely to focus partially on limiting Iranian influence in the region, says the Guardian.

The UN envoy to Yemen stated that the Saud-led coalition backing President Hadi and the Houthi-Saleh alliance both refuse to discuss peace efforts in the face of the escalating violence in the country.

March 6-13: States fight new travel ban, Trump seeks to change rules of engagement

Monday, March 6, 2017

US airstrikes killed a former Guantanamo Bay detainee, Yasir al-Silmi, on March 2. Al-Silmi was released from the detention center in 2009, where he had been held for seven years.

President Trump announced a new version of the travel and immigration ban on six Muslim-majority countries today. The changes to the ban include removing Iraq from the list of countries that will be impacted, and shifts in the timeline of implementation, but the order remains extremely discriminatory and is opposed by human rights groups such as Amnesty International (and the YPP).

Feb 27-March 6: US ramps up airstrikes, medical supplies reach Taiz

Monday, February 27, 2017

Foreign policy published an article critiquing the US administration’s approach to the Yemeni civil war. They warn against treating the Houthis as though they are tightly allied with Iran and against greater military involvement in Yemen, stressing that this will likely only strengthen the relationship between the the Houthi movement and Iran.  

February 14-20: UN Experts release report, al-Hudaydah campaign continues

Tuesday, February 14, 2017

Houthi forces are reportedly preparing for the oncoming advance of pro-government forces toward al-Hudaydah. Meanwhile, clashes on the Yemen-Saudi border resulted in the deaths of at least 7 Saudi soldiers, according to Al Jazeera.

The Trump administration is considering sending a prisoner held in Yemen, suspected of being a member of al-Qaeda, to Guantanamo Bay. This would be the first time since 2008 that a prisoner was sent there.