Washington Center for Yemeni Studies

Join us for this timely discussion as experts examine U.S. strategy challenges in the #MiddleEast under the #Trump administration and explore pressing questions about the future of U.S. policy in #Yemen and the region. Learn More and Register ?? https://lnkd.in/girqx5Vz

Experts address crucial topics such as the role of Yemeni-Americans in #USelections, implications for US foreign policy in #Yemen and the region, #Houthi detention of aid workers, and more in our latest Policy Review. https://lnkd.in/gXpNY-3K

Our team had the pleasure of attending the National Council on U.S.-Arab Relations 32nd Arab-U.S. Policymakers Conference and Gala in Washington, D.C., last week. Throughout the week, we engaged in vital discussions on US-Yemeni relations and critical U.S. policies on #Yemen, notably with US Special Envoy to Yemen, Tim Lenderking, and Yemen’s Ambassador to the US, Mohammed Al Hadhrami. 1. With Ambassador of Yemen to the US Mohammed Al Hadhrami 2. With His Royal Highness Prince Turki Al Faisal 3. With Deputy Special Envoy for Yemen, Megan Stewart? 4. With MP of Lebanon, Samy Gemayel, and MEI Non-resident Scholar, Shukriya Bradost 5. With Member of the People’s Assembly of Egypt, Mohamed Abou El Enein

My latest article for the Future for Advanced Research and Studies (FARAS) generations on the weaponization of humanitarian assistance in Yemen and its implications for regional stability. As Yemen's humanitarian space contracts, the detention of UN and NGO workers since June 2024 by the #Houthi militia illuminates a broader pattern: the systematic transformation of humanitarian assistance into an instrument of governance. Through calculated control of aid flows and civil society, particularly #education, the Houthis are engineering a profound restructuring of #Yemen's social fabric, one that threatens to reshape the country's development trajectory for generations.

A must-read report by Human Rights Watch. No due process for prisoners who were detained in the past few months on charges of espionage. The #Houthis' arbitrary detentions, coerced confessions & abuse of aid workers in #Yemen reveal the brutal machinery sustaining their power, which I unpacked in my article yesterday. https://lnkd.in/exm-7rsE

This election season, #Yemeni-American endorsements highlighted a pragmatic approach to engaging with presidential candidates on crucial issues—from Middle East policy to social justice at home. #electionday2024

WCYS Senior Policy Analyst and MEI Scholar Fatima Abo Alasrar provides a critical analysis of #Yemen's involvement in the escalating regional tensions between Israel and the Axis of Resistance and highlights the?#IRGC-backed #Houthis'?key role in exacerbating this confrontation in Middle East Institute’s latest Middle East Focus podcast,?"Yemen Civil War: Ten Years Later.”

Check out our latest Policy Review featuring in-depth coverage of the devastating floods in #Yemen, economic challenges in the banking sector, and obstacles to humanitarian aid, among other crucial topics addressed by our experts. https://lnkd.in/gVFHSW38

In my most recent article, I explore the ways in which #Iran-backed #Houthis are capitalizing on the international community's increasingly reactive stance in the Red Sea. Under the pretense of aiding Gaza, Houthis are furthering #Tehran's larger #geopolitical aspirations by attacking oil tankers in addition to engaging in asymmetric warfare. The traditional military's existing playbook is proving dreadfully insufficient, and the stakes are higher than ever.

In a recent analysis, Sadeq Al-Wesabi, Senior Fellow for WCYS, highlights the devastating impact of #Houthi policies on #Yemen's banking sector. The #Iran-backed group's strict ideological interpretations, including the abolition of interest rates, have crippled the country's financial system. This has led to acute liquidity shortages, hindering humanitarian aid efforts and threatening the economic survival of businesses and citizens alike. While a recent #UN-brokered agreement offers a glimmer of hope for stabilizing the financial system, Al-Wesabi emphasizes that the path to recovery remains uncertain. Deep mistrust and complex economic challenges pose significant hurdles to rebuilding Yemen's shattered banking sector. Read more here: https://lnkd.in/gS-3Rp5y