... very least to inflict a series of humiliating defeats on the forces that are loyal to the internationally recognized government of President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi and the Saudi-led coalition troops. Even after the coronavirus had hit the country, the Houthis resumed ballistic missile
attacks
on Saudi Arabia, and also launched an offensive in Marib Governorate. Clashes also broke out near the strategically important Al-Hudaydah Port.
The Battle of Marib
Marib Governorate is considered the richest province in northern Yemen, with oil and gas ...
... Kingdom’s limitations in its ability to resolve the Yemeni conflict to its own benefit. It is not that the military campaign proved to be a zero-sum game for Riyadh; on the contrary, Saudi Arabia managed to achieve its basic goal: it did limit the Houthi expansion into the country.
Saudi Arabia clearly set itself the goal of weakening North Yemen (the Yemen Arab Republic) by supporting the South. South Yemen (the People’s Democratic Republic of Yemen) was not as dangerous for Saudis as the North, with which the Kingdom has ...
... petroleum companies: in March-April, French Total, Austrian OMV, US Occidental Petroleum Corp, Norwegian DNO ASA and others evacuated their expatriate staff and significantly scaled back or completely shut down production in Yemen.
On March 25, when a Saudi Arabia-led coalition launched airstrikes against Shia Houthis in Yemen, oil prices rallied with Brent increasing by $3 in one day. The effect of a surprise military campaign was short-lived and didn’t produce much change in the market. Yet for as long as the security situation remains uncertain in ...
... to lie in fear of the Shiite expansion.
The Saudis have long been vocal about their
concern over the prospects of a Shiite crescent encompassing Iraq, Syria and Lebanon, and Yemen could now become another ally of Iran, completing the encirclement of Saudi Arabia.
The Saudi response to the Houthi rise was akin to panic, as they rushed to pressure the Arab League into deciding to set up a coalition and launch an air campaign despite the risk that this approach would merely repeat U.S. mistakes in Afghanistan and Iraq.
Along with the Houthi ...
