Yemen suffers turmoil on multiple fronts

Yemen suffers turmoil on multiple fronts

Yemen is beset by wars, unrest and piracy. Here are the main troubles it faces:

NORTHERN REBELLION: Government troops and Shiite rebels have been fighting on and off since 2004. The root cause is a sense of being neglected by the government. Yemeni officials claim Iran is abetting the uprising, and neighboring Saudi Arabia shares that concern. The U.S. is skeptical.

— SOUTHERN SECESSIONISTS: During the Cold War Yemen was divided in two, and the south allied with the Soviet Union. Southerners complain they have been marginalized since unification in 1990, and protests there have raised fears a separatist movement is coming into being. Most of Yemen’s oil is in the south.

— AL-QAIDA: Al-Qaida militants, including fighters returning from Afghanistan and Iraq, have established sanctuaries among a number of Yemeni tribes, particularly in three provinces bordering Saudi Arabia. In January, militants announced the creation of “al-Qaida in the Arabian Peninsula,” a merger of the network’s Yemeni and Saudi branches. The U.S. wants Yemen to focus on al-Qaida rather than on the rebellions.

— PIRATES: Yemen is feels the impact of piracy from Somalia, across the Gulf of Aden. Its navy has clashed with Somali pirates and foiled several attacks on Yemeni vessels.