The Houthi Regime is an Integrated Propaganda Machine
OPINION — In the first three years after the Houthis’ 2014 takeover of Yemen’s capital, the de facto government in Sanaa was staffed by a […] More
Yemen
Pinprick attacks on Houthi positions won’t solve the bigger problem
OPINION / EXPERT PERSPECTIVE — It took two months of escalating attacks on commercial ships for the U.S. military to respond aggressively to the most […] More
Can Riyadh Leverage Failed Negotiations?
OPINION — Two months ago, the Saudis took unprecedented public steps to show the Houthis (and the world) they were serious about ending their involvement in the […] More
Saudi Arabia’s Disengagement from Yemen Will Be Messy
OPINION — The logic behind Saudi Arabia’s latest diplomatic maneuver was clear. Riyadh faced a major threat from the Iran-led axis, and when the U.S. […] More
The Latest
How Iran is Winning, One Attack at a Time
EXPERT PERSPECTIVE — This week, U.S. Central Command (CENTCOM) issued a statement confirming that “U.S. forces at Al Dhafra Air Base, near Abu Dhabi in the United […] More
US Approach toward Yemen Needs More Work
Mark D. Wallace is CEO of United Against Nuclear Iran (UANI) and the former U.S. Ambassador to the United Nations for Management and Reform. Cipher […] More
Where Are Six Years of War in Yemen Going?
EXPERT ANALYSIS — At a time when western officials are focusing their attention toward national security threats posed by China, the war in Yemen is […] More
COVID and Navigating the New Middle East Challenges
The global pandemic caused by COVID-19 has added a significant layer of uncertainty to an already complicated situation in the Middle East. The Cipher Brief […] More
US Foreign Policy and a ‘Bridge to the Unknown’
Cipher Brief Expert John McLaughlin is a distinguished practitioner in residence at the Johns Hopkins University School of Advanced International Studies. He served as the Deputy […] More
United States Targets Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula Leader in Yemen
Bottom Line Up Front U.S. officials have expressed confidence that a series of drone strikes in Yemen in January was successful in killing Qassim […] More
The Cipher Brief’s OSINT Trend Line Report
The Cipher Brief’s NEW Open Source Collection Report (OSINT) uses open source data to track trends around the world that impact national and global security. […] More
Stalemate and Suffering in Yemen
Bottom Line Up Front To date, despite years of reported war crimes by nearly all sides involved in the Yemen conflict, there has been […] More
No Progress in Yemen
Bottom Line Up Front The latest attack by Houthi rebels against Saudi oil and gas infrastructure involved ten drones equipped with improvised explosives. The […] More
Saudi Arabia Forced to Fight its Own War in Yemen
The withdrawal of UAE troops from the disastrous war in Yemen is forcing Saudi Arabia to shoulder more of its own burden. There is […] More
Supporting a Deadly Quagmire in Yemen
Bottom Line Up Front As U.S-supported Saudi air strikes continue to kill Yemeni civilians, a bill to end that support remains stuck in the Senate. […] More
The Consequences of Collapse in Yemen
Bottom Line Up Front President Trump’s veto of attempted Congressional limits on U.S. involvement in the war in Yemen increases the likelihood of a […] More
Ending Support for the War in Yemen
Bottom Line Up Front On February 13, the U.S. House of Representatives voted 248-177 to require the administration to end support for Saudi Arabia’s […] More
The Yemen Policy Debate Heats Up
Bottom Line Up Front The October killing of Saudi journalist Jamal Khashoggi has shifted U.S. congressional opinion sharply against Saudi Arabia’s de-facto leader, Crown […] More
The U.S. Makes Noise but No Action Over Yemen
Bottom Line Up Front Last week, both U.S. Secretary of State Mike Pompeo and Secretary of Defense James Mattis declared the need for a […] More