Has the crisis in Yemen been forgotten?

Islamic Extremism

It neighbors oil-rich Saudi Arabia but Yemen is one of the poorest countries in the Arab Region and a frontline for terrorism. The country faces record unemployment, critical food and gas shortages, and is threatened with constant violence from an al-Qaeda insurgency and political instability. Has Yemen become a forgotten crisis?

Yemen has been in turmoil since the popular uprising in 2011 that ousted President Ali Abdullah Saleh after a 33-year reign. Demonstrators rallied for democratic and economic reforms, yet critical shortages persist for simple staples such as water and bread. The United Nations has said nearly half of Yemen’s population is growing hungry. The impoverished country is also the main staging area for terrorist attacks against the West. The United States along with the Yemen government has been waging an offensive against a growing insurgency from al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. To discuss the plight of Yemen, CCTV’s Anand Naidoo interviews Rafat Al-Akhali; a non-resident fellow with the Atlantic Council, and the co-founder and chairman of Resonate! Yemen. It’s a non-profit foundation engaging youth in public policy.

The attack on the USS Cole in 2000 and the foiled bombings against American jetliners have all been linked to al-Qaeda forces in Yemen. The U.S. has responded with drone strikes across Yemen and has sent millions of dollars of aid and military equipment. To discuss these issues, CCTV’s Anand Naidoo is joined by Dr. Charles Schmitz, an expert on Yemen from Towson University in Baltimore, Maryland; and Haroon Ullah, a scholar and U.S. Diplomat who specializes in the Middle East.