The civil war in Yemen is now in its third year. As a direct result of the war and the blockade imposed by Saudi Arabia and its allies, Yemen is now the scene of the world’s most pressing humanitarian crisis. There is a cholera epidemic—a half a million Yemenis have been infected—millions face starvation, and the country’s infrastructure has largely been destroyed by Saudi Arabia’s indiscriminate aerial campaign.
Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) controls large swaths of southern Yemen where it is now the best organized and most capable organization operating there. The war is a gift to AQAP but it is has also been a bonanza for U.S. and UK-based arms manufactures who—with the approval of UK and U.S. governments—have sold billions of dollars of weapons to Saudi Arabia and its coalition partner the United Arab Emirates (UAE). Not to be left out are the Gulf based private military companies that are making millions from their contracts with the UAE whose army largely consists of mercenaries.
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