Saudi-led intervention in the Yemeni civil war

Saudi-led intervention in Yemen
Part of the Yemeni civil war and the Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy conflict
An airstrike in Sanaʽa on 11 May 2015 Current (February 2024) political and military control in the ongoing Yemeni civil war   Government of Yemen[d] and allies   Houthis-led Supreme Political Council   Southern Transitional Council and other UAE-backed groups   Local, non-aligned forces such as the Hadhramaut Tribal Alliance   Controlled by Tareq Saleh's National Resistance Forces.   Ansar al-Sharia and Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) (See also a detailed map)
Date 26 March 2015 – ongoing (9 years, 7 months, 3 weeks and 6 days) Operation Decisive Storm 26 March – 21 April 2015 (3 weeks and 6 days) Operation Restoring Hope 22 April 2015 – present (9 years and 7 months) Location Yemen Status Ongoing
Belligerents
Saudi Arabia[1] The Alliance United Arab Emirates[2][3][4]  Sudan (2015–19)[2]  Bahrain[2]  Kuwait[2][5]  Qatar (2015–17)[2]  Egypt[2][6]  Jordan[2]  Morocco (2015–19)[2][7]  Senegal[a][9] Academi contractors[10] (2015–16)[11] Saudi-paid Yemeni mercenaries[12] Supported by:  United States[13][14][15]  U.S. Navy[b]  United States Army[19] (Special Forces)  United Kingdom[c]  France  Canada  South Korea National Intelligence Service[24][25]  Malaysia  Australia In support of: Republic of Yemen (Presidential Leadership Council) Yemeni Armed Forces[26] Yemeni Air Force Hirak Popular Resistance Committee Al-Islah Movement	Revolutionary Committee/Supreme Political Council Houthis Yemen Army (pro-Saleh and Houthis) (2015–17) Yemeni Republican Guard (2015–17) Allies Iran (alleged by USA, denied by Iran)[27] North Korea (according to USA)[28][29][30][31]	Al-Qaeda AQAP[32][33]
Commanders and leaders
Salman bin Abdulaziz Al Saud Mohammed bin Salman Fahd bin Turki Al Saud (2015–20) Mutlaq bin Salem bin Mutlaq Al-Azima[34] The Alliance Khalifa bin Zayed Al Nahyan Mohammed bin Zayed Al Nahyan Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah # Nawaf Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah # Mishal Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah Hamad bin Isa Al Khalifa Tamim bin Hamad Al Thani (2015–17) Abdel Fattah el-Sisi Abdel Fattah al-Burhan (2015–19) Abdullah II Mohamed VI (2015–19) Macky Sall Rashad al-Alimi (2022–) Mohammed al-Maqdashi Gen. Ali al-Ahmar[35] Former Leaders Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi (2015–22) Gen. Abd Rabbo Hussein †[36] Gen. Ahmad Al-Yafei †[37]	Mohammed Ali al-Houthi Mohamed al-Atifi (2016–) Mahdi al-Mashat (2018–) Saleh Ali al-Sammad † (2015–18) Hussein Khairan (2015–16) Abdul-Malik al-Houthi	Khalid Batarfi Ibrahim al Qosi[38]
Strength
100 warplanes and 150,000 troops[39] The Alliance 30 warplanes and 15,000 troops[40][41] 4 warplanes[citation needed] and 15,000 troops[42] 15 warplanes[43] 300 troops[44] 15 warplanes[43] 10 warplanes, 1,000 troops[43][45] (until 2017) 4 warships[46] and warplanes[47] 6 warplanes[43] 6 warplanes, 1,500 troops[43][48] 2,100 troops[9] (soldiers not yet deployed in 2016)[8] Academi: 1,800 security contractors[49]	150,000–200,000 fighters[50] 200,000–250,000 Republican Guard: 100,000 Popular Committees: 100,000	AQAP Ansar al-Sharia: 6,000–8,000[51][52][53][54]
Casualties and losses
1,000[55]–3,000[56] soldiers killed by 2016; 10 captured[57] 108–130 soldiers killed[58][59] 1,000 - 4,000 soldiers killed[60][61] 15 soldiers killed[62][63][64] 1 F-16 crashed[65] 4 soldiers killed[66][67] 10 soldiers killed[68][69] 1 F-16 shot down[70][69] 1 F-16 lost[71] Academi: 71 mercenaries killed[11] Unknown	Thousands killed (Aljazeera; as of May 2018)[72] 11,000+ killed (Arab Coalition claim; as of Dec. 2017)[73]	Al-Qaeda AQAP 1,000 killed, 1,500 captured[74]
12,907 Yemeni civilians killed (per the LCRD) 8,672 civilians killed, 9,741 injured by coalition's airstrikes (per Yemen Data Project)[75] 500+ Saudi civilians killed (2014–2016)[76][77] 377,000+ people killed overall (150,000+ from violence) (2014–2021) (UN)[78]
^ soldiers not yet deployed in 2016[8] ^ logistic support and assistance with the naval blockade of Houthi-held territories in October 2016[16][17][18] ^ training, intelligence, logistical support, weapons, and blockade up to 2017[20][21][22][23] ^ Under the Presidential Leadership Council since April 2022

Part of a series on the Yemeni crisis
Main topics Yemeni revolution 2012 Yemeni presidential election Houthi insurgency al-Qaeda insurgency in Yemen South Yemen insurgency Houthi takeover in Yemen Aftermath of the Houthi takeover in Yemen Yemeni civil war (2014–present) Saudi-led intervention in the Yemeni civil war COVID-19 pandemic
Background History of Yemen Yemeni unification Yemeni peace process Human rights in Yemen
v t e

On 26 March 2015, Saudi Arabia, leading a coalition of nine countries from West Asia and North Africa, launched a military intervention in Yemen at the request of Yemeni president Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, who had been ousted from the capital, Sanaa, in September 2014 by Houthi insurgents during the Yemeni Civil War. Efforts by the United Nations to facilitate a power sharing arrangement under a new transitional government collapsed, leading to escalating conflict between government forces, Houthi rebels, and other armed groups, which culminated in Hadi fleeing to Saudi Arabia shortly before it began military operations in the country.

The first month of the intervention, codenamed Operation Decisive Storm (Arabic: عملية عاصفة الحزم, romanized: Amaliyyat 'Āṣifat al-Ḥazm), consisted of airstrikes on Houthi rebels and a full blockade^[79] On 22 April, the Saudi-led coalition declared that it had achieved its initial goals and announced Operation Restoring Hope, which would comprise a "combination of political, diplomatic and military action" while continuing "to prevent the Houthi militias from moving or undertaking any operations inside Yemen".^[80] Ground forces were subsequently deployed into the country^[81] as part of a broader offensive against both Houthi militants and loyalists of Hadi's predecessor, Ali Abdullah Saleh.^[82] Owing to Iran's support of these factions, the conflict is widely regarded as part of the broader Saudi-Iran proxy conflict.

Egypt, Morocco, Jordan, Sudan, and the United Arab Emirates have provided air and ground forces, while Kuwait, Qatar, Bahrain, and Constellis have headed several ground operations. Djibouti, Eritrea, and Somalia opened their airspace, territorial waters, and military bases to coalition forces.^[83] At varying stages, the intervention has been backed by the United States, United Kingdom, France, Germany, and Canada. The U.S. provided intelligence and logistical support, such as aerial refueling and search-and-rescue for downed coalition pilots,^[84] accelerated the sale of weapons to coalition states,^[85] and continued strikes against AQAP. In 2016, American and British military officials were confirmed to have provided advice and training related to Saudi-led airstrikes in Yemen.^[86][87][88]

The intervention has received widespread international criticism for killing thousands of noncombatants, destroying civilian infrastructure, and intensifying Yemen's humanitarian crisis.^[89][90] Academics also dispute whether it violates Article 2(4) of the UN Charter.^[91][92][93] By 2019, the conflict was reported as a "military stalemate",^[94] and the following year, Saudi Arabia declared its first unilateral ceasefire.^[95][96] On 29 March 2022, the Saudi-led coalition announced that it would cease all hostilities within Yemen to facilitate political talks and peacekeeping efforts;^[97] Houthi and Saudi officials subsequently began bilateral peace talks mediated by Oman under UN auspices, and most restrictions on commercial goods were lifted by April 2023.^[98] As of April 2024, open hostilities have largely ceased, though negotiations are ongoing due to complications caused by Houthi attacks on Red Sea shipping since October 2023.^[98]