Yemen
North Yemen became independent of the Ottoman Empire in 1918. The British, who had set up a protectorate area around the southern port of Aden in the 19th century, withdrew in 1967 from what became South Yemen. Three years later, the southern government adopted a Marxist orientation. The massive exodus of hundreds of thousands of Yemenis from the south to the north contributed to two decades of hostility between the states. The two countries were formally unified as the Republic of Yemen in 1990. A southern secessionist movement in 1994 was quickly subdued.
Foreigners in Yemen, particularly Westerners have been consistently targeted for kidnappings and attacks both by Islamic extremists and tribal groups who have used hostages as leverage in negotiations with the government on various local issues. In March 2003 an American oil worker was killed by a gunman near Marib and in late December 2002, a gunman killed 3 American missionary doctors in an attack at a hospital south of Sanaa.
In late 2001 a previously unknown Yemeni group threatened to attack US and US-allied "infidel" targets in retaliation for US attacks against bin Laden and the ruling Taliban in Afghanistan. In October 2000, 17 American sailors were killed and many more were injured in an incident involving a US Navy ship in port in Aden, Yemen in an attack US authorities believe was masterminded by Saudi-borne terrorist Osama bin Laden.
In February 2002 Yemen expelled more than 100 foreign Islamic scholars, including British and French nationals, as part of a crackdown on terror and suspected al-Qaida members. The government has also launched several military operations in remote areas to root out Islamic extremists. Yemen also entered into an agreement for counter-terrorism training from US Special Forces in 2002.
More than 100 kidnappings have occurred throughout Yemen since 1991. Armed tribesmen mainly conduct these kidnappings with grievances against the Yemeni government. They are normally resolved peacefully within a few days, although in rare cases tribesmen have held some foreigners for extended periods. Some kidnappings or attempted kidnappings are initiated by carjacking.
Visitors who decide to travel to Yemen is essential should exercise a very high level of caution. They should make security arrangements in advance with their sponsoring organization in Yemen, vary routes and times of daily commute, and travel between cities only by air or with an armed escort.
President Ali Abdallah Salih has ruled northern Yemen since 1978 and was named president of united Yemen in 1990.
Yemen's government continues to implement an economic reform program which it agreed to in 1995 as a condition for lending from the International Monetary Fund (IMF). The program includes banking reform, privatization of state-run industries, major infrastructure investment, and reduction or elimination of government subsidies, including wheat, flour, gasoline, and electricity. Yemen's economy has been negatively affected in the last year by declining prices for its oil exports, its largest source of hard-currency revenues. Remittances from Yemenis working in the wealthier countries of the Persian Gulf also have declined. Concerns about security and project risk in Yemen have heightened in recent months as a result of the terrorist attacks of September 11, 2001. Yemen's real gross domestic product grew 4.6% in 2001, and it is projected to grow 3.6% in 2002.
Yemen's current economic reforms follow a period of political instability and civil war in the early 1990s. In May 1990, the former independent states of North and South Yemen reached a unification agreement, creating a united Republic of Yemen. However, political disputes between President Ali Abdallah Saleh and Vice President Ali Salim al-Baidh led to armed clashes between northern and southern forces in April 1994, plunging the four-year-old country into a full-scale civil war by May 1994. The war ended in July 1994 after the fall of Aden, the former capital of South Yemen and the stronghold for forces loyal to Vice President al-Baidh. Current instability mainly centers on periodic kidnappings of foreigners, including oil workers, usually by Yemeni tribesmen. Besides kidnappings, there have been periodic attacks on an oil pipeline in the Marib region of eastern Yemen, which is operated by U.S.-based Hunt Oil.
Under terms of its agreements with the IMF and World Bank, Yemen is required to initiate a privatization program. The government has said that it will encourage private investment in the agriculture, fisheries, and oil, and sell off its stake in companies throughout the Yemeni economy. The government also stresses that it is seeking both foreign and local investors. State-owned businesses cited as candidates for privatization include farm and agricultural cooperatives, construction companies, power stations, public housing facilities, refineries, the state's petroleum retail network, shipping companies, and the state telecommunications company. Progress toward privatization, however, has been slow. The Yemeni government decided in June 2001 not to fully privatize the Aden Refinery, but rather to divest only part of its ownership stake.
Yemen and Saudi Arabia have resolved their longstanding border dispute. In a treaty signed in June 2000, the two governments agreed on the delineation of sections of their common border, which had been in dispute since the 1930s. The deal is expected to open up opportunities for increased Saudi trade and investment in Yemen, and has made possible the award of oil and gas exploration rights for areas in Yemen adjacent to previously disputed areas of the border.
