Yemen - AL-MONITOR: The Middle Eastʼs leading independent news source since 2012

Yemen cover image

Yemen

April 24, 2026

Sanaa 7:58 pm

23°C

Members of Houthi security forces stand guard while supporters of Yemen's Houthi movement attend an event commemorating the ninth anniversary of the Saudi-led intervention in their country, in the capital, Sanaa, on March 26, 2026.

Exclusive

Senior Houthi official says Bab el Mandab closure an option if any Gulf states join war

Houthi Deputy Information Minister Mohammed Mansour also said the strait could be closed “should the aggression against Iran and Lebanon escalate.”

Elizabeth Hagedorn

By Elizabeth Hagedorn

In Washington, DC, reporting on diplomacy, regional politics, human rights

Saudis shop for fresh products at a market in Riyadh on Feb. 18, 2026, on the first day of the holy fasting month of Ramadan in Saudi Arabia.

Analysis

Alternative supply routes emerge as Iran war tests Gulf food security

Roughly 61 million people in the Gulf rely on established food supply chains, many of which have been upended since the United States and Israel launched their attack against Iran on Feb. 28.

In Bristol, reporting on regional business, climate change, AI, tech

Riyadh

Analysis

In Saudi Arabia, Erdogan fosters security alignment, $30B trade push

The Turkish president’s visit cemented Ankara and Riyadh’s accelerating convergence as regional crises mount and Gulf rivalries sharpen.

Ezgi Akin

In Ankara, reporting on diplomacy, EU-Turkey ties, NATO

Galaxy Leader

Yemen’s Houthis hint at Red Sea attacks as US-Iran tensions rise: What to know

The Houthi warnings come as a US aircraft carrier accompanied by several guided missile destroyers entered Gulf waters amid tensions with Iran.

Latest News

Thousands rally for South Yemen independence amid Saudi diplomatic push

AFP via Getty Images

Egypt's economy can weather more Red Sea attacks, says finance minister

Ships sail along Egypt's Suez Canal near Ismailia on April 16, 2025.

From Egypt to Lebanon: What’s at stake for regional states on Trump’s visa ban list?

From Iraq to Yemen, how Iran proxies are responding to protests

Iranians gather while blocking a street during a protest in Tehran, Iran, on Jan. 9, 2026.

Face masks are distributed to Yemeni students upon their arrival to sit for their final secondary school exams in the capital Sanaa on August 15, 2020, amid the coronavirus pandemic crisis. (Photo by Mohammed HUWAIS / AFP) (Photo by MOHAMMED HUWAIS/AFP via Getty Images)

'Time is running out' in Yemen: NGOs urge USAID to restore funding to Houthi-held north

Six of the largest humanitarian responders in Yemen urged USAID acting administrator John Barsa to immediately restore aid to Houthi-held northern Yemen.

A reinforcement convoy of Yemen's Security Belt Force dominated by members of the the Southern Transitional Council (STC) seeking independence for southern Yemen, heads from the southern city of Aden to Abyan province on November 26, 2019, amid tensions with the forces of Saudi-backed President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi. - Saudi Arabia brokered on November 5 a power sharing agreement between Yemen's internationally recognised government and southern separatists of the STC, in a bid to end infighting that had d

Can new mechanism advance stalled Riyadh Agreement in southern Yemen?

Neither the Riyadh Agreement nor the mechanism for accelerating it can fundamentally end the conflict in southern Yemen, but will rather help suspend it and control its rhythm, according to analysts.

Yemen’s Red Sea 'time bomb’ is a Beirut-like disaster in waiting

An abandoned oil tanker is a looming catastrophe off the coast of Yemen’s most vital port, threatening the livelihoods and health of vast numbers of people.

UN condemns Yemen strike that killed as many as 9 children

Initial reports suggest Thursday's airstrike in Houthi-held northern Yemen killed up to nine children and injured seven others.

A general view shows the terraced gardens and the golden Shrine of Bab following renovation works at the Bahai World Center, in the Israeli port city of Haifa, on April 12, 2011. The restoration work in the Bahai Faith second holiest site began in 2008 and was carried out by volunteers from Mongolia, China, Ecuador, Kenya, Germany, Canada, U.S, South Africa, Vanuatu, India and New Zealand . The gardens, tucked into the steep slopes of mount Carmel, are designed in nine concentric circles around the shrine w

The lesser of two evils: Yemen’s Bahais from prison into exile

Shortly after their release, six members of the Bahai community in Yemen were sent into exile, in a stark example of the political climate in this war-ravaged country.

Journalists in Yemen attacked ‘from all quarters,’ UN rights chief says

Since the beginning of April, the United Nations has documented an abduction, a killing and a number of physical attacks and threats against journalists operating in war-torn Yemen.

TOPSHOT - A photo taken on March 18, 2018, shows a Yemeni child looking out at buildings that were damaged in an air strike in the southern Yemeni city of Taez. / AFP PHOTO / Ahmad AL-BASHA (Photo credit should read AHMAD AL-BASHA/AFP via Getty Images)

Yemen’s southern separatists abandon self-rule to pursue power-sharing plan

The news comes three months after the Southern Transitional Council announced self-rule in parts of southern Yemen.

UN Yemen envoy calls for investigation after strikes kill civilians

The United Nations said 11 civilians were killed in airstrikes Wednesday in al-Jawf province in northern Yemen.

Yemeni economy in free fall amid collapsing currency, COVID-19

The majority of Yemeni society bears the consequences and stands alone, unable to confront the ravages of war, division and the ongoing economic deterioration.

UAE seeks turnaround in relations with Somalia for help in Yemen war

The United Arab Emirates has offered Somalia to reopen a hospital in the capital, in exchange for backing the UAE’s involvement in the Yemeni war, but Somalia rejected this amid deteriorating relations between the two countries.

United Arab Emirates

Will formation of new government in Yemen lay groundwork for peace?

Despite agreeing to a cease-fire in south Yemen, it seems the chances of ending the conflict between the Saudi-backed government forces and the UAE-backed southern separatists and forming a new government are dim.

Smoke billows following an airstrike by Saudi-led coalition in the Yemeni capital Sanaa, on June 16, 2020. - Yemen is wracked by a war which has killed tens of thousands of people and led to the world's worst humanitarian crisis, according to the United Nations.
The war between Huthi rebels and pro-government forces escalated in 2015 when a Saudi-led military coalition intervened against the rebels who control large parts of Yemen including the capital Sanaa. (Photo by MOHAMMED HUWAIS / AFP) (Photo by MOHAM

Congress revives bid to pull US out of Yemen war

The Democratic-held House is taking another stab at ending US support for the Saudi coalition’s war against Yemen’s Houthis.