Yemen in turmoil

Yemen is one of the most poor and undeveloped country in the Arab region with a population of 25 million. Its per capita income is only US$1200 and the geographical size 527,970 km². The country is inhabited by Sunni and Shi'ite Muslims. It is ruled by the Sunni sect in the face of trouble created by the Shi'ite sect. As a result of the conflict between the two sects the economic condition of the country is ever declining while its neighbouring states are making economic progress.
Yemen commands the Yemen Bay and the Babel-Mandeb strait. About 4.0 million barrels of oil are transported per day through the strait and about 20 thousand ships ply per year across the Bay. About 40 per cent of world businesses and trade transactions are made through this sea routes.
This strait is the most important commercial route which is used by most of the Arab states for their export-import trade and it is also the most important trade route of Asian-European export-import trade. This explains to why the regional and international big powers get involved in the internal Sunni-Shi'ite conflict of Yemen.
The recently conducted air raids led by Saudi Arabia have received strategic support of the U.S., U.K. and other western powers. On the other hand, the Shi'ite-dominated Iran has termed this attack as barbarous aggression while it gets tacit support of Russia and China on its side. But if the conflict continues and deteriorates further it will not be surprising if Russia and China come out with public support.
According to a U.N. estimate, 750 people killed have been killed and about 150 thousand people have been driven out from their homes in three weeks of air strikes and ground fighting in the country. Many mosques, schools, hospitals and other installations have been damaged or destroyed in the conflict.
On March 20, 2015 a Saudi-led coalition began its air strikes after the Houthi rebels closed in on the southern port city of Aden. The Houthi run most of the country and forced the Saudi-backed president Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to flee to Riyadh.
Meanwhile,  dismissing reports published in the Gulf Arab media, former president Ali Abdullah Saleh  has said he is not going to leave the country seeking a safe exile in the face of Saudi Arabian war planes bombing troops loyal to him and his Houthi militia allies.
The Iran-allied Houthis, a Shi'ite Muslim movement from northern Yemen, have formed an alliance of convenience with Saleh. Saleh is widely believed to be plotting behind the scene to stage a comeback on Yemen's tumultuous political scene. But military sources have stated that some army units loyal to Saleh have defected and now support Hadi.
Although the conflict is rooted in local rivalries, it is the newest front in sectarian proxy war between Sunni-ruled Saudi Arabia and the Shi'ite Iran. The U.N. humanitarian agency Office for the Coordination of Humanitarian Affairs (OCHA) said on April 17, 2015 that about 150 thousand people have been displaced which is 50 per cent more than the previous U.N. estimate. Health facilities had reported 767 deaths from  March 19, 2015 to April 13, 2015. The U.N. humanitarian coordinator for Yemen said, thousands of families have by now fled their homes as a result of the fighting and air campaign. Ordinary families are struggling to access basic requirements such as health care, water, food, fuel etc. for survival.     Public water services are on the verge of collapse or ruin and hospitals were overwhelmed with casualties.
The U.N. appealed for US$274 million to meet the humanitarian assistance needs of Yemen over the next three months. The U.N. Secretary General on  April 16, 2015 called for an immediate halt to the fighting, but his special envoy to Yemen quit after his plan failed to halt the war.  
In other developments, military units protecting Masila, Yemen's largest oil field, withdrew on  April 17, 2015. The security of the oil field was handed over to armed local tribes, tribesmen and oil company employees. The companies that run the oil fields are the state-owned Petro-Masila, Nexen Energy of Canada and Total SA of France.
The oil industry and oil businessmen are watching the on-going conflict with concern as Yemen lies on shipping lanes and the narrow Babel-Mandeb straits. The conflict also has wider strategic dimensions. In recent years the U.S. has poured aid and personnel into Yemen as part of its war on Islamist militants but its military teams evacuated last month.
The present situation of Yemen is a matter of big concern for Bangladesh since it is a destination for thousands of migrant workers.
However, the best way to end the Yemen crisis is to hold an urgent dialogue among the concerned parties and conduct an inclusive election to form a national government at the earliest. Otherwise, Yemen may become a war field of conflicting international big powers capitalising Sunni-Shi'ite sectarian conflicts.           
The writer is a retired Professor of Economics, BCS General Education Cadre.
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