For many years, Yemen has been the focus of contention, and the world's major powers and regions have waged brutal wars on this land. But let's look at this war-scorched land from a different perspective.
Off the coast of Somalia, American warriors boarded a small boat and seized a shipment of missile parts. The destination of the supplies is said to be the Houthis in Yemen. Since this raid, Houthi militias have attacked cargo ships on the Red Sea almost daily. Britain and the United States are also carrying out air strikes against the Houthis. This is a new round of conflict, and Yemen has become the site of a long history of multi-sided warfare in the world.
Europe's largest powers are interested in Yemen not because of the legendary Queen of Sheba, Mocha or the Spice Road, but because of its geostrategic location. In 1839, the British conquered Aden in southern Yemen. Queen Victoria's soldiers built the city into a transport hub connecting Europe, India and Singapore.
Aden was once a global city, attracting businessmen from Arabia, Africa and Asia. They settled here, built churches, roads, and schools. In 1954, Queen Elizabeth II personally visited the colony and attended the ceremony of the hospital that bears her name. However, it was not until 1967 that the British withdrew from Aden and other areas they controlled in South Yemen.
North Yemen has always been the core territory of Zay'd Muslims, with its rulers wielding secular and religious power. After the collapse of the Ottoman Empire, they turned North Yemen into a kingdom cut off from the outside world. The last Zaidist ruler of North Yemen was Ahmad bin Yahya. He was considered a tyrant addicted to drugs and died in 1962.
After the coup, North Yemen descended into civil war. During the Cold War, the war turned into a multi-threaded conflict, supported by Saudi Arabia and the United Kingdom. The republicans received support from countries such as the Soviet Union and Egypt. The war resulted in the deaths of more than 100,000 people in North Yemen, and in the end the republicans emerged victorious.
In 1990, North Yemen and South Yemen were reunited. With the collapse of the Soviet Union, the socialist leaders of South Yemen had to accept reunification. However, unity did not bring harmony. Ali Abdullah Saleh became a party and ruled Yemen like a party. In 2010, the wave of the Arab Spring swept through Yemen, and the people's rebellion against the rulers intensified. In 2012, Saleh was forced to relinquish power and hand over the ** position to Abdrab al-Mansour Hadi.
Saudi Arabia, with the support of the United States and Great Britain, launched an offensive against Yemen, mainly through air strikes. The coalition forces then conquered the capital Sana'a and the port city of Aden, while Hadi went into exile in Riyadh. In 2015, Yemen was once again mired in conflict, becoming a battleground for a Sunni monarchy and the Shiite Houthis, as well as an arena for indirect confrontation with Iran.
Although Yemen has long suffered from war, we still see a glimmer of hope. It is only through the efforts and cooperation of the international community that peace and stability can prevail in Yemen. We should encourage all parties to sit down for dialogue and find solutions to build a more harmonious Yemen together.
When looking at the Yemen issue, we need to consider an important question: how should the international community work together to promote peace and development in Yemen?