Arab Spring: in Yemen, the peaceful movement has turned into a civil war

On January 27, 2011, the opposition demonstrated in Sanaa, the capital of Yemen, to demand the fall of President Ali Abdallah Saleh.

Reuters / Khaled Abdullah

Text by: RFI Follow

2 min

In Yemen, 10 years ago, the first demonstrations against the power in place began, in the wake of the Arab Spring in Tunisia and Egypt.

A peaceful youth movement which certainly led to the departure of the then president, Ali Abdallah Saleh, but which for lack of a successful transition, has turned into a civil war.

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The people want the fall of the regime,

 " the now familiar slogan of the Arab Spring resonates in Sanaa, the capital of Yemen.

Thousands of young people demonstrate this January 27, 2011 to demand the departure of President Ali Abdallah Saleh in place for decades and accused of authoritarian abuses.

The demands of the population are also economic and social, Yemen is among the poorest countries in the world.

The youth who demonstrate are then joined by opposition parties and tribes.

On March 18, 2011, supporters of the president shoot at a peaceful rally in Sana'a, killing 52 people.

President Saleh clings to power, he will not leave until November, pushed by the streets and by his Gulf neighbors who are exerting pressure.

Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi then takes the reins of power but is quickly challenged.

In September 2014, rebels, the Houthis, seized the capital Sanaa.

Thus begins a bloody war between the Houthis and the government helped from 2015 by a coalition led by Saudi Arabia.

Today the conflict continues and Yemen is going through, according to the UN, the worst humanitarian crisis in the world.

►Also listen: Geopolitics, the debate - The Arab Spring, ten years later: is it time for a final assessment?

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  • Ali Abdallah Saleh

  • Yemen

  • Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi

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