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The government on 27 February declared a state of emergency in the southern province of Al-Dhalee,

President Barack Obama has committed the US to providing more assistance to the Sanaa government, but such promises carry real risks, especially when the donor has so little confidence in the recipient

US security assistance to Yemen has been patchy over the last half decade, reflecting the ebb and flow of the US-Yemeni relationship. All the usual tools of US security assistance

Yemen plans to boost oil output by up to 10% to more than 300,000 b/d this year and is in talks with firms including China’s Sinopec to upgrade its Aden refinery

In the run up to announcing that Sanaa would negotiate a new agreement, the International Monetary Fund, on 8 January announced the conclusion of its 2009 Article IV Consultation with Yemen

As beleaguered President Ali Abdullah Saleh faces a range of pressing domestic problems, the timely return of a controversial former prime minister could help rally support – and mend fences with Saudi Arabia

The world is finally paying attention to Yemen, stirred by its link to the ‘underpants bomber’, renewed sightings of Al-Qaeda in southern Arabia and the Al-Houthi bloodshed. A London donor conference and national dialogue in Sanaa are but two of a number of initiatives to reverse a deteriorating situation. The government has committed to start talks on a new International Monetary Fund programme. International support is building for more action against Al-Qaeda within the country and against piracy offshore; this could mean more special forces on the ground (the United States has already decided that its counter-terrorism specialists will spend more time in Yemen) and beefing up the Yemen Coast Guard and other services. These are among the “five key items” that UK foreign secretary David Miliband said were agreed at the 27 January ‘Yemen Meeting’ in London.

The European Community's Development Co-operation Instrument is being

Washington’s relations with the Yemeni regime face a key test as the Obama administration develops a new approach to state failure. Ali Abdullah Saleh, meanwhile, is looking to new political formulae to hang on to power

Yemen’s little-noticed southern unrest has finally gained some serious recognition with the 15 December publication of a Human Rights Watch report into the brutal reaction of state security services to the mostly peaceful southern protests. The report – In the Name of Unity: The Yemeni Government’s Brutal Response to Southern Movement Protests – documents the heavy-handed suppression of the Southern Movement (Al-Thawra Al-Janoubi) coalition.

Economic as well as political problems are adding to fears that Yemen is sliding towards state failure. The Kingdom’s military acceleration along the border in November illustrates the considerable force with which Saudi Arabia is prepared to intervene in its neighbour’s affairs

Since the beginning of 2009, there have been signs that the long-awaited overspill of jihadist violence from Yemen into Saudi Arabia has gathered pace, leading up to last month’s Saudi offensive against militant targets in the Yemeni borderlands.

The Saudi bombing of targets in Yemen has underlined the potential for the crisis in the poor and populous southern Arabian state to flare into wider conflict (see Risk management report – Saudi Arabia). Escalation of the crisis also poses major problems for opposition forces within the country, who are well aware of President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s ability to turn a political and humanitarian drama to his advantage.

Humanitarian concerns have forced a ceasefire in Yemen’s murderous Al-Houthi conflict amid signs that the Arab-Iranian ‘cold war’ is hotting up. With Saudi Arabia and Egypt joining the US in seeing wider regional significance in what has long been understood as a localised conflict, Ali Abdullah Saleh is looking to exploit a difficult situation

The government has stressed the Iranian connection in recent communiqués on the northern conflict. Houthi leader Badreddin Al-Houthi exposed his movement to charges of Iranian backing by contacting Shia marjas (spiritual leaders) in Najaf and Qom, drawing stern criticism of government crackdowns from Shia notables such as Iraq's Grand Ayatollah Ali Al-Sistani. Iranian state media has strongly criticised the