The Yemen Peace Project

is dedicated to supporting Yemeni individuals and organizations working to create positive change; advancing peaceful, constructive US policies toward Yemen; defending the rights of Yemenis in the diaspora; and increasing understanding of Yemen in the wider world.

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our Vision

Founded in 2010, the YPP works toward a future in which constructive American engagement enables self-determination and peaceful, democratic governance for all Yemenis.

OUR GOALS

To help Yemenis and Yemeni Americans make their voices heard at all levels of government;

To promote policies that respect international law and the rights of the Yemeni people;

To provide policymakers and the public with accurate information about Yemeni affairs;

To foster mutual understanding through media and the arts;

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our programs

ADVOCACY
 

The YPP is America’s first and only advocacy organization dedicated solely to Yemeni affairs and the US-Yemen relationship.

The Yemeni empowerment fund

The Yemeni Empowerment Fund exists to help Yemeni individuals and organizations create positive change in their communities, their countries, and the wider world. 

Sign up for updates from the YPP

Sign up below to receive our weekly newsletter, with up-to-date coverage of events in Yemen, and our action alerts, which allow our readers to be a part of our advocacy efforts in the US.

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from the blog

Featured
August 3-9: Investigations find corruption in UN offices, STC and government battle in Aden
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Netroots Conference Features Panel on Yemen Advocacy

On July 13, 2019, Yemen Peace Project executive director Layla Picard participated in a panel discussion on how activists have influenced US policy toward the conflict in Yemen. This panel, part of the Netroots progressive politics conference in Philadelphia, and moderated by Stephen Miles of Win Without War, sought to highlight the importance of Yemeni and American activists’ work because, as Miles put it, “the situation in Yemen is the poster child for everything that’s wrong with US foreign policy.” Picard and the other panelists described their advocacy work, the challenges they’ve faced, and what the future holds for Yemeni-American and progressive anti-war activism.

Read More →
July 27-August 2: Civilians killed in Sa’dah market, Houthis bomb Security Belt, al-Qaeda attack rocks army base
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weekly news summaries

Each week we summarize the most important stories from Yemen. You can receive these updates by email by subscribing to our newsletter above.

Featured
August 3-9: Investigations find corruption in UN offices, STC and government battle in Aden
July 27-August 2: Civilians killed in Sa’dah market, Houthis bomb Security Belt, al-Qaeda attack rocks army base
July 20-26: Houthis and coalition trade airstrikes, offshore oil tanker threatens to spill

July 20-26: Houthis and coalition trade airstrikes, offshore oil tanker threatens to spill

Saturday, July 20

San’a was rocked by several powerful explosions following air raids by the Saudi-led coalition on Saturday. The strikes ostensibly targeted Houthi air defenses and ballistic missile sites. On the same day, the Houthis claimed to have carried out drone attacks on military targets at King Khalid Air Base in southwestern Saudi Arabia. According to Houthi spokesman Yahya Sarei, the drone attacks targeted radar installations and military positions at the air base near the city of Khamis Mushait. There was no comment from the Saudi-UAE coalition on the rebel claim.

Key Readings

Our Readings page summarizes important reports and studies by other organizations and respected experts.

Featured
CARPO report explores requirements for peace

CARPO, the Center for Applied Research in Partnership with the Orient, released their latest report on Yemen, Understanding Peace Requirements in Yemen, on March 5, 2019. The report highlights political and social factors that impact the ongoing conflict, identifying requirements for peace in relevant sectors, and important actors that can play a role in meeting these requirements.

Power Struggles in Ta'iz Pitch Aligned Groups Against Each Other, Report Finds

While the war in Yemen is often portrayed as having two sides---the Houthis aligned with GPC-San’a against the Saudi-led coalition and Hadi’s government forces--in reality, both sides are fragmented, with groups representing different political loyalties, often resulting in conflict among the groups within each alliance.

The ambiguous decline of jihadist militancy in Yemen

A July 2018 policy paper by Dr. Elisabeth Kendall for the Middle East Institute explores the gradual development of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and the Islamic State in Yemen (ISY), and the conditions each organization require to succeed. Kendall analyzes the structures of AQAP and challenges the organization has faced. She also compares AQAP to ISY and considers their recent decentralizations. She urges key conflict actors to take actions to ultimately end the war and act now to restrict jihadist militancy in Yemen.

ON THE BLOG

Featured
August 3-9: Investigations find corruption in UN offices, STC and government battle in Aden
Read More →
Netroots Conference Features Panel on Yemen Advocacy

On July 13, 2019, Yemen Peace Project executive director Layla Picard participated in a panel discussion on how activists have influenced US policy toward the conflict in Yemen. This panel, part of the Netroots progressive politics conference in Philadelphia, and moderated by Stephen Miles of Win Without War, sought to highlight the importance of Yemeni and American activists’ work because, as Miles put it, “the situation in Yemen is the poster child for everything that’s wrong with US foreign policy.” Picard and the other panelists described their advocacy work, the challenges they’ve faced, and what the future holds for Yemeni-American and progressive anti-war activism.

Read More →
July 27-August 2: Civilians killed in Sa’dah market, Houthis bomb Security Belt, al-Qaeda attack rocks army base
Read More →

ON TWITTER

 

ON THE PODCAST

Featured
Share your perspective on the war in Yemen

We want to hear what you think about the conflict in Yemen and America’s role in Yemeni affairs. Record an audio message using your mobile phone or computer, and email it to us at mafraj@yemenpeaceproject.org. We’ll include your message in an upcoming episode of the Mafraj Radio podcast and post it on the Mafraj Blog. We welcome comments on any aspect of the conflict, but here are a few prompts to get you started:

  • Should the United States continue to support the Saudi-led coalition’s intervention in Yemen?
  • Do you think the planned coalition campaign to capture/liberate al-Hudaydah is a good idea?
  • If you were in charge of the peace process, what would you do to bring the warring parties back to the negotiating table?

We look forward to hearing from you!

Read More →
Mafraj Radio #29: America at war

Welcome to the long-awaited fourth season of Mafraj Radio, the official podcast of the Yemen Peace Project. I’m Will Picard. On this episode we’ll discuss America’s role in Yemen’s civil war, and the Trump administration’s efforts to block citizens of Yemen and five other nations from entering the United States. And we’ll meet one of the many Yemeni immigrants who call America home.

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Mafraj Radio #28: Wartime Journal bonus episode

This episode features another entry in our Wartime Journal series. We’ve asked contributors in different parts of Yemen to record audio journal entries for us, conveying their own personal experience of Yemen’s ongoing war. Our first installments featured recordings by an anonymous civil servant living in San’a. That same contributor offers her observations on how Yemen’s war has pushed millions of Yemenis into deep poverty, and even starvation. 

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