YEMEN

Fighting is commonplace in Yemen and often escalates into war. Violence erupts between groups that want to modernize the country into a strong republic and other groups that fear losing Arab and Islamic culture. For most of the twentieth century Yemen has been split into two countries known as North and South Yemen. The North had long been occupied by the Ottomans and was more recently influenced by Egypt. The South came to be administered as a British protectorate and was often referred to as Aden, after the port city. During the 1960's both Yemens revolted, the North against the Yemeni monarchy that had been in place for centuries and the South against the British. The North formed the Yemen Arab Republic (YAR). The South formed a Marxist-Leninist government later named the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY). Both countries endured civil war and assassinations caused by political unrest. In 1990 the two countries united to form the Republic of Yemen (ROY), but fighting continued.

The ROY survived civil war in 1994 and held parliamentary elections in 1997, the country's first direct presidential elections in 1999, and local elections in 2001. Islamic militants in Yemen drew international attention in the late 1990's and early twenty-first century, after one group of militants kidnaped foreign tourists and another launched a suicide bombing on a U. S. naval vessel.

The location and geography of Yemen play important roles in its position in regional politics and controversies. Frequent warfare, certain Islamic policies, and traditional resistance to modernization have combined to keep Yemen's economy undeveloped. Yemen is often engaged in violent conflicts with neighboring countries.

Yemen occupies the southwestern corner of the Arabian Peninsula, bordering Saudi Arabia to the north and Oman to the east. The Gulf of Aden lies along the southern coast and the Red Sea lies to the west. Because of its location Yemen has always been important to world trade, first as an overland route during ancient

Times and later as a provider of necessary refueling ports for shipping.

In the sixteenth century Yemen exported coffee from the port of al-Mukh, leading to the popularity of coffee as well as the term Mocha. After the opening of the Suez Canal, the port of Aden became one of the busiest in the world. However, the interior of Yemen remained isolated, tribal, and mainly Zaidi Islamic.