When was yemen formed

Political turmoil forced the government to postpone general elections, which were finally held on April 27, , completing the Yemeni unification process begun three years earlier. The General People's Congress GPC , the former ruling party in North Yemen, won seats in parliament; the Yemen Socialist party YSP , the former ruling party of South Yemen, won 56 seats; a new Islamic coalition party, al-Islah, won 62 seats; and the remaining 62 seats were won by minor parties and independents.

The president and prime minister remained in office after the election, and the three major parties formed a legislative coalition.

The successful elections quickly gave way to political turmoil. In August Vice President al-Beidh withdrew from Sanaa to Aden and ceased to participate in the political process. From his base at Aden, al-Beidh issued a list of conditions for his return to Sanaa; the conditions centred on the security of the YSP, which, according to the vice president, had been subject to northern-instigated political violence since unification.

The deadlock persisted into the later months of , despite extensive mediation efforts by representatives from several foreign governments. In January Yemen's principal political parties initialled a Document of Pledge and Agreement, designed to end the six-month feud between Yemen's president and vice president; the document called for a thorough review of the constitution and the country's economic programs and goals.

The document was signed by the two leaders in February, but military clashes occurred almost immediately thereafter.

In April Oman and Jordan halted mediation efforts aimed at getting the two sides to adhere to their peace agreement. Later that month, heavy fighting broke out between northern and southern forces at 'Amran, north of Sanaa; the fighting signalled the disintegration of the Yemeni union.

Yemen exploded into full-scale civil war in early May. Both sides carried out missile attacks in and around Sanaa and Aden. The DRY assembled a political structure similar to that of unified Yemen, and al-Beidh was elected president by a five-member Presidential Council. Meanwhile, Saleh dismissed a number of YSP party members from Yemen's government in an attempt to remove the influence of al-Beidh.

Fighting continued throughout June, much of it centred around the port cities of Aden and Al Mukalla. Both sides launched attacks on oil installations, and a great deal of infrastructure was damaged or destroyed. Following the failure of a Russian cease-fire agreement, Saleh's northern forces launched a final drive on Aden and Al Mukalla in early July, ultimately defeating the DRY army.

By mid-July all of the former South Yemen was under Saleh's control. After the collapse of the DRY, Saleh's government was faced with the task of rebuilding Yemen's economy and government. The infrastructure in and around Aden had sustained the most damage, from water systems to oil refineries and communications centres.

In July more than cases of cholera were diagnosed in Aden, due in part to water shortages in the city. In September the Yemeni legislature approved a number of major reforms to the country's unification constitution. Saleh was formally re-elected president on October 1, and he appointed AbdRabbuh Mansur Hadi as his new vice president. In an attempt to revive the country's economy, Yemeni leaders made efforts to devise and implement an economic austerity program called for by several international economic agencies; this was achieved with a great deal of difficulty in the spring of In February the governments of Yemen and Saudi Arabia agreed to negotiate a settlement to their long-standing dispute over their shared border.

The agreement defused a potentially explosive situation, as Yemen and Saudi Arabia had skirmished in the region only a few months before. As of May negotiations continued but the two sides had not agreed on a formal border. At least 12 people were killed in the fighting. Both Yemen and recently independent Eritrea claim the Hanish Islands; Yemeni plans for a resort on Hanish al Kabir reportedly sparked the attack.

By May the two countries had reached a truce and agreed to submit the question of sovereignty over the islands to arbitration. Government: Before unification, North Yemen was governed by a benign authoritarian regime dominated by the military, and South Yemen functioned as a centralized socialist party-state.

Politics opened up with the creation of the Republic of Yemen in , and the number of freely functioning parties, lobbying groups, and communications outlets multiplied. An open, hotly contested national election in April marked the end of the transition period and yielded a coalition government consisting of the GPC, the YSP, and the conservative Islamic Reform Grouping al-Islah , with the GPC holding nearly a majority of the cabinet posts.

The election was the first multiparty election on the Arabian Peninsula, and the first in which women could vote; the vast majority of Yemenis participated. The constitution adopted in , which was similar to North Yemen's constitution, provided for a member elected legislature, called the Council of Deputies.

In addition to its legislative tasks, the council would select a five-member Presidential Council and vote on the composition and program of the cabinet. The Presidential Council would choose from its membership a president and vice president, and also nominate the prime minister. The members of the Council of Deputies would be selected for five-year terms, as would the president and vice president.

In September , at the end of the country's civil war, the Council of Deputies voted to adopt major reforms to the unification constitution. The amended constitution declares Islamic Sharia basic law as the basis of all legislation and describes the economy as market-based. The reforms also abolished the five-member Presidential Council, and stipulated that the presidency be decided by universal suffrage, with no one permitted to hold office for more than two terms. A Short History of Yemen The history of the Yemen stretches back over 3, years, and its unique culture is still in evidence today in the architecture of its towns and villages.

Ancient Yemen. The Rise of Islam. Ottoman Rule. Last of the Imams. Allied with former President Saleh, their former nemesis, the Houthis quickly prevail.

February Hadi and his cabinet, after briefly being held hostage by the Houthis, flee to Saudi Arabia, leaving the Houthis in practical, if not legal, control of the institutions of the state. April While not endorsing military action itself, the UN Security Council adopts Resolution , endorsing the political goals of Houthi military surrender and return to UN-facilitated political talks. Respite will come when global and regional powers implement and enforce an end to hostilities, deliver protected, uninterrupted, and large-scale humanitarian assistance, and reach a political settlement that puts the needs of the Yemeni people first and foremost.

Yemen: A Brief Background. Early History Yemen has played a small by significant role in world history. Yemen continues to be a fragile state and a breeding ground for al-Qaeda militants. In December on a flight from Amsterdam to Detroit, a year-old Nigerian man allegedly attempted to ignite an explosive device hidden in his underwear.

It failed to detonate. The alleged bomber, Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab, told officials later that he was trained and directed by the terrorist group Al Qaeda. Soon after, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, a group based in Yemen, took responsibility for orchestrating the attack. The attempted attack underscores the United States' troubled relationship with Yemen, and the likelihood that Al Qaeda is trying to set up an operational and training hub in that country to rival the one currently in Pakistan.

The government of Yemen and the Houthi rebels agreed to a cease-fire in February , tentatively ending a six-year war. The government's main conditions for a cease-fire demanded that rebels open blocked roads, withdraw from civilian areas, return detainees, and refrain from launching attacks on Saudi Arabia.

The government of Saudi Arabia had been drawn into the war when a Saudi border guard was killed in November In the following months at least Saudi soldiers were killed in battles with Houthi guerilla troops. If the cease-fire remains in effect long term, the Yemeni government will be able to focus on the diminishing the presence of Al Qaeda in the country. The protests that swept through the Middle East in early also spread to Yemen in early February, with both anti- and pro-government protesters taking to the streets.

Thousands of students rallied in the capital Sana and the city of Taiz and called for the resignation of President Saleh, while another bloc of protesters in Aden, a southern city, used demonstrations to underscore their long-sought quest for independence from the north. The students formed an informal alliance, called the Joint Meeting Parties, with Islamists and other opposition groups.

President Saleh promised that he would not use force against the protesters and said he would not run for reelection in , but the protests continued and he reneged on his promise when, on March 18, tens of thousands of anti-government protesters gathered in the capital, Sana. Government forces opened fire, killing some 50 protesters. The crackdown fueled the protesters' anger and intensified calls for the Saleh to step down. On March 20, he fired his cabinet and several military leaders and members of the defected to the opposition.

March 25 saw the largest protests to date, with pro- and anti-government supporters holding opposing demonstrations in Sana. Saleh said he was willing to step aside if the country would be in "safe hands. In late April, representatives from the Gulf Cooperation Council presented Saleh and the opposition with a proposal in which Saleh would immediately pass power to his deputy and resign within 30 days. In exchange, he and his family would be granted immunity.

The opposition would end the street protests and join a coalition government with Saleh's party. Saleh accepted the offer, but refused on three occasions in May to sign the agreement. On June 3, Saleh barely survived an attack on the presidential compound. The Ahmar family, opposition leaders whose militia has been fighting Saleh's troops for nearly two weeks, was blamed for the attack. Saleh traveled to Saudi Arabia to receive medical treatment.

Members of Saleh's family and allies assumed control of the government. The fighting continued throughout the country during Saleh's absence, and Islamic militants gained control of several regions, leaving the opposition frustrated and demoralized.

In addition, a humanitarian crisis emerged, with skyrocketing food prices and a short supply of electricity and fuel. In August, opposition leaders formed a national council, which the government instantly condemned. Prime Minister Ali Mujawar, who was also injured in the attack on the presidential compound, returned to Yemen from Saudi Arabia in late August.

Saleh made a surprise return in late September. He called for a cease-fire and for negotiations to resume, but the fighting continued between government forces and protesters, and soldiers joined the fight alongside with anti-government protesters. In addition, the GCC set out a timetable for elections, the drafting of a new constitution, and the formation of a National Dialogue Conference to implement the plans.

Born in New Mexico in , Awlaki became radicalized as a college student and started preaching about global jihad and Islamic extremism at mosques. He moved to Yemen in and his anti-American sermons grew more threatening. Fluent in both English and Arabic, he was known for his charisma and ability to attract a devoted and passionate following.

He is believed to have inspired Nidal Malik Hasan, the U. Army psychiatrist who was convicted of killing 12 fellow soldiers and a civilian in a shooting spree at Fort Hood, Texas, in As head of external operations of al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, Awlaki is believed to have been involved in planning attacks against U. President Saleh left Yemen on January 22, His departure from the country followed a vote by parliament to grant him and members of his government immunity from prosecution.

Saleh arrived in the United States later in the month to seek medical treatment. Abdel Rabbo Mansour Hadi, the former vice president who took over for Saleh in November, was the only candidate in the February presidential election, and he won Saleh was on hand for Hadi's inauguration on February 27, which marked a smooth transition of power.

Despite Saleh's resignation, the opposition called for a change of guard in the country's powerful military, whose leadership is split between relatives of Saleh and supporters of the opposition.

Just days into his term, Hadi was confronted with an attack by Yemeni militants on a military outpost in southern Yemen that killed more than 90 soldiers.

In May, Hadi launched a campaign to rout al-Qaeda havens in the southern part of Yemen. On May 21, a suicide bomber struck a military parade in Sana, killing more than soldiers. A branch of al-Qaeda took responsibility, saying the attack was in retaliation for the military's crackdown on the jihadists.

Yemeni officials announced in August that they had foiled a plan for a large-scale terrorist attack by al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. Officials said they were alerted to the plot by intercepted communications between Ayman al-Zawahiri, the leader of the organization, and Nasser al-Wuhayshi, the head of the group in Yemen, in which Zawahiri reportedly ordered Wuhayshi to launch the attack, and by the recent arrival to the capital, Sana'a, of dozens of militants.

Officials said the militants planned to target Western embassies and offices, the Yemeni military headquarters, and oil and gas pipelines. They did not, however, indicate how they prevented the attacks.

The announcement came days after the Obama administration shut down 19 embassies and consulates in the Middle East and North Africa, including posts in Yemen, in response to the intercepted communications.

Some analysts were skeptical that Yemen actually thwarted attacks, suggesting instead that Yemen's announcement was politically motivated? Indeed, after U. The National Dialogue Conference, which was part of the November agreement, opened in March to recommend provisions for a new constitution, ways to shore up the economy, end corruption, and discuss how to curb the secessionist movement in the south. The conference was made up of representatives from political parties, women's groups, youth movements, and other civil organizations.

It ended in January , several months behind schedule. While the conference fell short of expectations, it agreed to establish an anti-corruption board, end childhood marriage, improve the rights of women, implement a federal system of government, and work to reduce the marginalization of southerners. In response to the conference, a presidential committee laid out a plan in February for Yemen to become a federation of six regions. The Houthis took advantage of the instability in Yemen, and in early July took control of Amran, a city 45 miles north of the capital, Sana.

In August, Houthi leaders demanded that Hadi rescind his decision to end subsidies that helped the poor. The move helped the Houthis to gain wide support, from both Shia and Sunnis, and by early September the Houthis had entered the capital and set up camp there.

On Sept.