Archive: yemen

28th August 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
Efforts to negotiate a ceasefire between the Yemeni government and Houthi rebels in the north of the country have collapsed, with each side blaming the other. President Salih has vowed to "cleanse" Saada province of rebels but in a speech on Wednesday he acknowledged that Operation Scorched Earth,… Read more
27th August 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
A ceasefire may be on the way in the war between government forces and Houthi rebels in northern Yemen. NewsYemen saysa ceasefire was agreed verbally on Wednesday and that air strikes have halted though warplanes are still flying over Saada province. A local official is quoted as saying there are… Read more
26th August 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
Violent confrontations over water shortages continued for a fourth day in southern Yemen on Tuesday. Police reportedly used tear gas and live bullets to disperse the crowds and one demonstrator was injured. On Sunday, a protester was shot dead, according to Reuters. Water has always been scarce in… Read more
24th August 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
This morning I noted, with a hint of scepticism, the Yemeni government's claim that the bodies of 100 Houth rebels had been found on roadsides around Harf Sufyan. The official government news agency has now issued a statement saying the claim was untrue. A previous government statement earlier this… Read more
24th August 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
This has been widely reported elsewhere, so I’ll just note it for the record.  The Yemeni government says the bodies of 100 Houthi rebels have been found on roadsides around Harf Sufyan. "It seems these are members who had attempted to escape from the fierce fighting in Sufyan city and were chased… Read more
23rd August 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
Not before time, the US embassy in Sana’a issued a statementyesterday expressing “deep concern” at the continuing conflict between the Yemeni millitary and the Houthi rebels. The statement continued: We call on both parties to return to the ceasefire that was established last year. In the meantime… Read more
23rd August 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
Not before time, the US embassy in Sana’a issued a statement yesterday expressing “deep concern” at the continuing conflict between the Yemeni millitary and the Houthi rebels. The statement continued: We call on both parties to return to the ceasefire that was established last year. In the meantime… Read more
22nd August 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
I can’t imagine why the Yemeni government’s news agency decided to publish this article, unless to show the disaffected citizens of Sana’a and Aden how fortunate they are. It’s an extraordinary description of life in Jawf province, just over 100 miles from the capital, which borders Saudi Arabia as… Read more
21st August 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
The latest issue of the Yemen Times gives a rare glimpse of daily life in the Saada war zone: In the countryside of Saada, there is no electricity or phone service and generators can be deadly. According to one resident of rural Dhahyan, her neighbours communicate by hand-written letters, and when… Read more
18th August 2009
By: Brian Whitaker
An American congressional delegation led by former Republican presidential candidate John McCain arrived in Yemen yesterday on a summer junket touring “post-war zones and forward operating bases” which also includes Libya, Kuwait, Iraq, Afghanistan, and … er … Iceland (!). Presumably arch-neocon… Read more