Which countries, movements, groups are involved in Yemen’s yearslong conflict?
Yemen’s civil war, which has lasted more than a decade, erupted after a UAE-backed separatist movement swept through the southern territory, splitting the Saudi-led coalition.
Yemen’s civil war, which has lasted more than a decade, erupted after a UAE-backed separatist movement swept through the southern territory, shattering the Saudi-led coalition created to fight the Iran-aligned Houthi group.
Below are details on the main factions in the conflict in Yemen, which has caused one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises:
The Houthis
The Yemeni conflict was sparked when the Houthi movement, officially named Ansar Allah, overthrew the internationally recognized Saudi-backed government of then-President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi in late 2014.
The group remains the dominant military force in the country, controlling the capital Sanaa and Yemen’s populated northern highlands. It is estimated that it controls a territory where between 60 and 65% of Yemenis live.
The Saudi-led coalition accuses Iran of arming, training and financing the Houthis. The group denies being an Iranian proxy and says it is developing its own weapons.
HOUTHI TERRORISTS carry weapons as they stand near the site of Israeli airstrikes in Sanaa, Yemen, in September. (credit: KHALED ABDULLAH/Reuters)
The Houthis demonstrated their missile and drone capabilities during Yemen’s war in attacks on Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, targeting oil installations and vital infrastructure.
Seen as part of a regional alliance known as the Iran-backed “Axis of Resistance,” the Houthis have also sided with the Palestinians in the Gaza war, launching drones and missiles into Israel and attacking commercial shipping in the Red Sea.
The Houthis have shown resilience, defying more than a decade of bombing from the Saudi-led coalition, as well as US and British strikes in recent years.
Saudi Arabia
Riyadh entered Yemen when it led the military coalition against the Houthis in March 2015, seeking to restore Hadi’s government. Saudi Arabia has sought to prevent an Iran-aligned group from consolidating power on its southern border.
Riyadh and Tehran, despite a China-brokered thaw in relations, have long been regional rivals and deeply distrust each other.
STI
The Southern Transitional Council, trained and equipped by the United Arab Emirates, seeks secession for the south, which was an independent state until its unification with the north in 1990. The southern leaders at the time attempted to secede in 1994, but were quickly defeated by the army of then-President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
The STC, led by Aidarous al-Zubaidi, is ostensibly part of the Saudi-led coalition but said in 2020 it would establish autonomy in the south. Tensions peaked in December 2025 when the group seized large swathes of land in Hadramout and Al Mahra provinces and invaded Saudi Arabia’s borders, challenging the influence of the regional heavyweight.
Islam Day
The Yemeni Congregation for Reform, better known as al-Islah, is a Sunni Islamist movement with historical ties to the Muslim Brotherhood. It is a key faction within the recognized government, but is considered by the UAE and the STC to be a terrorist organization. Its main stronghold has long been Marib, the country’s only gas-producing region with one of its largest oil fields.
United Arab Emirates
The UAE joined the Saudi-led coalition and was among its most effective ground forces. A troop withdrawal from the UAE was announced in 2019 and completed in 2020, but it has maintained influence on the ground through the STC and other factions.
Abu Dhabi is motivated by its antipathy towards the Muslim Brotherhood and securing shipping lanes in the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait and the Gulf of Aden, analysts say.
The government supported by Saudi Arabia
The eight-member Presidential Council led by Rashad al-Alimi is the internationally recognized authority in Yemen, but its power is waning. It was formed in Riyadh in April 2022 to replace former President Hadi and unify anti-Houthi forces, but the council was paralyzed by the divisions it was supposed to resolve.
Following the STC offensive in December, effective government control is likely now limited to small, isolated pockets and dependent on Saudi air power.
National Resistance Forces
The National Resistance Forces are a well-equipped anti-Houthi force led by Tarek Saleh, nephew of former Yemeni President Saleh and a member of the CLP. Originally created with UAE support to fight the Houthis on Yemen’s west coast, the force has maintained ties with Saudi Arabia and aims for a unified Yemen, positioning itself as a counterweight to the Houthis and southern secessionists.
