Yemen's critical importance as a strategic country in the Middle East cannot be overstated. It commands the Bab Al-Mandab Strait, linking the Indian Ocean, Arabian Sea and Gulf of Aden with the Red Sea. It is of vital importance to all its neighbours, and to the world. Few countries have such a strategic location and few countries have such a complex political history. Regional and international powers have always had an interest in the country's domestic developments. Yemen commands the shipping lanes that lead to the Suez Canal, and much of the Arabian Gulf's oil is transported through its territorial waters. It is for this reason that the country has attracted the attention of foreign powers. Even though Yemen is the poorest country in the Arabian Peninsula, it does have some oil. However, with the price of petroleum plummeting and with its relatively large population of 25 million, the impoverished and underdeveloped country is hard pressed to make ends meet. The country's coffers were emptied, with the former leader, ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh, embezzling an estimated $66 billion. Today he is on the run. Having allied himself with the Houthi insurgents, Saleh has provoked a state of political chaos in the country. Yemen faces a humanitarian disaster and the internationally recognised president, Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who first fled to the port city of Aden, has now moved, in the face of Houthi provocations, to the Saudi Arabian capital Riyadh. Yemenis must decide their future. Regional powers and the international community must come to the rescue. Foreign powers are fast evacuating their stranded citizens. The greatest concern now is for the millions of locals who lack the most basic commodities. Many Yemenis have been displaced because of the fighting. Others are stranded abroad as refugees. The United Nations says the conflict has killed 600 people and wounded 2,200. This week, some 500 Houthi fighters were killed in clashes along the Saudi-Yemeni border. Popular Resistance Committees and local tribal militias are currently leading the battle against the Houthi attempt to control the entire country. Both President Hadi and the Houthis are opposed by Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP). AQAP has been making the most of the political vacuum in Yemen. From their strongholds in the south and east, they have been causing much trouble in the turbulent country A Saudi-led coalition is now leading the fight against the Houthis and to restore democracy and political stability in Yemen. Three Saudi officers were killed and two others wounded this week. The incident took place in the Saudi border province of Najran. Tehran has denied providing military support for Houthi fighters, but local anti-Houthi militiamen said they captured two Iranian military officers in Aden this week. The international community cannot afford to stand by and do nothing. The Houthis must not be permitted to gain the upper hand through the use of force. Egypt was deeply involved in the Yemeni Civil War from 1962 to 1970. The republicans, opposed to the royalists, were supported by Egypt. It is hoped that the current fighting will not drag Egypt directly into the conflict, even though Egyptian warships have been dispatched to Yemen as part of the coalition to restore political legitimacy in the country. What happens in Yemen could greatly exacerbate regional tensions. The conflict between the Houthis and the elected government of President Hadi is having ripple effects throughout the region. The Yemeni conflict must not be seen simply as a Shia Muslim versus Sunni Muslim war. Nor should it be seen as a proxy war between Saudi Arabia and Iran. In essence, it is a war to reinstate a democratically elected government and deny the aggressors, the Houthis backed by Saleh, the chance of hijacking the Yemeni Arab Spring. The Yemeni conundrum is a recurrent theme in modern Arabian politics. In Roman times, the country was called Arabia Felix, or Happy Arabia. Yemen is Arabia Felix no more.
