Yemen’s Day After Problem
If the international community wants to ensure that Yemen’s war actually ends when the peace deal is signed, it needs to rebuild the country’s economy.
Gregory D. Johnsen
Non-Resident Fellow, AGSIW; Former Member, U.N. Panel of Experts on Yemen
Gregory D. Johnsen is a non-resident fellow at the Arab Gulf States Institute in Washington. He has been a Peace Corps volunteer in Jordan, a Fulbright Fellow in Yemen, and a Fulbright-Hays Fellow in Egypt. In 2013-14 he was selected as BuzzFeed’s inaugural Michael Hastings National Security Reporting Fellow where he won a Dirksen Award from the National Press Foundation and, in collaboration with Radiolab, a Peabody Award. He has a PhD from Princeton University and master’s degrees from Princeton and the University of Arizona. Johnsen is the author of The Last Refuge: Yemen, Al-Qaeda, and America’s War in Arabia (W.W. Norton), which has been translated into multiple languages. From 2016-18 he served on the Yemen Panel of Experts for the United Nations Security Council. In 2019, he served as the lead writer for the United States Institute of Peace’s Syria Study Group. His writing on Yemen and terrorism has appeared in, among others, The New York Times, The Atlantic, and Foreign Policy.
Blog Post content-type in which the post is published
Blog Post content-type in which the post is published
Saudi Arabia’s Big Bet in Yemen
Saudi Arabia is looking for an exit from Yemen. While a Saudi withdrawal is unlikely to end Yemen’s civil war, the Saudis are likely to proceed if Iran can keep the Houthis onside.
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The Evolving Iranian-Houthi Relationship Spells Trouble for Ending the Yemen Conflict
Iran has leverage, influence, and history with the Houthis. As Saudi Arabia tries to extract itself from Yemen, Tehran will utilize all three to prolong the conflict.
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From the Mountains, Into the Palace: The Houthis Won the War but Might Lose What Comes Next
The Houthis will be more vulnerable after the full withdrawal of Saudi and Emirati forces than they have been at any time during the war.
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The Yemen Conundrum
The United States wants to end the war in Yemen, but given its lack of leverage over the Houthis, the few policy options it does have will likely make the situation worse.
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Why Yemen’s Truce Collapsed
At the moment, the Houthis believe they have more to gain from war than peace.
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Shabwa and Cracks in the Foundation of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council
Recent fighting in Shabwa highlights lack of unity of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, threatening its ability to present a common front against the Houthis.
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The Art of the Possible in Yemen
If the United States wants to avoid a disaster scenario in Yemen, it should shift its focus from the failed attempt to resurrect a single Yemeni state to laying the groundwork for a divided Yemen.
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The Yemeni Truce and the Long Road Ahead
Yemen’s fragile truce is being extended, but there is still a massive amount of work needed to bring the conflict to an end.
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Old Wine in New Skins: The Yemen Presidential Council
Yemen’s new presidential council was made in Saudi Arabia and backed by the UAE, which means it may struggle to find legitimacy on the ground.