History of Yemen - Wikipedia History of Yemen Part of a series on the History of Yemen Ancient history Kingdom of Saba Kingdom of Ḥaḑramawt Kingdom of Awsan Kingdom of Qatabān Kingdom of Ma'in Kingdom of Ḥimyar Kingdom of Aksum Sasanian rule Islamic history Rashidun Caliphate Umayyad Caliphate Abbasid Caliphate Ziyadid dynasty Najahid dynasty Sulayhid dynasty Mahdid state Ayyubid dynasty Rasulid dynasty Tahirid state Modern history Ottoman eyalet Qasimid state Aden Protectorate Sultanate of Lahej Ottoman vilayet Mutawakkilite Kingdom North and South Yemen Yemeni unification Yemeni Revolution Timeline Yemen portal Sabaean inscription addressed to the moon - god Almaqah, mentioning five South Arabian gods, two reigning sovereigns, and two governors, 7th century BCE. Yemen is one of the oldest centers of civilization in the Near East. Its relatively fertile land and adequate rainfall in a moister climate helped sustain a stable population, a feature recognized by the ancient Greek geographer Ptolemy, who described Yemen as Eudaimon Arabia ( better known in its Latin translation, Arabia Felix ) meaning `` fortunate Arabia '' or `` Happy Arabia ''. Yemenis had developed the South Arabian alphabet by the 12th to 8th centuries BCE, which explains why most historians date all of the ancient Yemeni kingdoms to that era. Between the 12th century BCE and the 6th century CE, it was dominated by six successive civilizations which rivaled each other, or were allied with each other and controlled the lucrative spice trade : Ma'in, Qataban, Hadhramaut, Awsan, Saba, and Himyar. Islam arrived in 630 CE, and Yemen became part of the Muslim realm. Contents 1 Ancient history 2 Middle Ages 2.1 Advent of Islam and the three Dynasties 2.2 Sulayhid Dynasty 2.3 Zurayid Dynasty 2.4 Ayyubid conquest 2.5 Rasulid Dynasty 2.6 Tahiride Dynasty 3 Modern history 3.1 The Zaydis and Ottomans 3.2 Great Britain and the Nine Regions 3.3 Ottoman Return 3.4 Idrisid Emirate And Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen 4 Two states 5 Unification 5.1 Al Qaeda 5.2 Government instability 2011 -- present 5.2. 1 2011 revolution 5.2. 2 2012 6 See also 7 Notes 8 References 9 Further reading 10 External links Ancient History Main articles : Ancient history of Yemen, Sabaeans, Qataban, Minaeans, and Himyarite Kingdom With its long sea border between early civilizations, Yemen has long existed at a crossroads of cultures with a strategic location in terms of trade on the west of the Arabian Peninsula. Large settlements for their era existed in the mountains of northern Yemen as early as 5000 BCE. Little is known about ancient Yemen and how exactly it transitioned from nascent Bronze Age civilizations to more trade - focused caravan kingdoms. Sabaean gravestone of a woman holding a stylized sheaf of wheat, a symbol of fertility in ancient Yemen The Sabaean Kingdom came into existence from at least the eleventh century BC. There were four major kingdoms or tribal confederations in South Arabia : Saba, Hadramout, Qataban and Ma'in. Saba is believed to be biblical Sheba and was the most prominent federation. The Sabaean rulers adopted the title Mukarrib generally thought to mean `` unifier '', or a `` priest - king ''. The role of the Mukarrib was to bring the various tribes under the kingdom and preside over them all. The Sabaens built the Great Dam of Marib around 940 BCE. The dam was built to withstand the seasonal flash floods surging down the valley. Between 700 and 680 BCE, the Kingdom of Awsan dominated Aden and its surroundings. Sabaean Mukarrib Karib'il Watar I changed his ruling title to that of a king, and conquered the entire realm of Awsan, expanding Sabaean rule and territory to include much of South Arabia. Lack of water in the Arabian Peninsula prevented the Sabaeans from unifying the entire peninsula. Instead, they established various colonies to control trade routes. Evidence of Sabaean influence is found in northern Ethiopia, where the South Arabian alphabet religion and pantheon, and the South Arabian style of art and architecture were introduced. The Sabaean created a sense of identity through their religion. They worshipped El - Maqah and believed themselves to be his children. For centuries, the Sabaeans controlled outbound trade across the Bab - el - Mandeb, a strait separating the Arabian Peninsula from the Horn of Africa and the Red Sea from the Indian Ocean. By the 3rd century BCE, Qataban, Hadramout and Ma'in became independent from Saba and established themselves in the Yemeni arena. Minaean rule stretched as far as Dedan, with their capital at Baraqish. The Sabaeans regained their control over Ma'in after the collapse of Qataban in 50 BCE. By the time of the Roman expedition to Arabia Felix in 25 BCE, the Sabaeans were once again the dominating power in Southern Arabia. Aelius Gallus was ordered to lead a military campaign to establish Roman dominance over the Sabaeans. The Romans had a vague and contradictory geographical knowledge about Arabia Felix or Yemen. The Roman army of ten thousand men was annihilated before Marib. Strabo 's close relationship with Aelius Gallus led him to attempt to justify his friend 's defeat in his writings. It took the Romans six months to reach Marib and sixty days to return to Egypt. The Romans blamed their Nabataean guide and executed him for treachery. No direct mention in Sabaean inscriptions of the Roman expedition has yet been found. A funerary stela featuring a musical scene, 1st century CE Himyarite King Dhamar Ali Yahbur II After the Roman expedition -- perhaps earlier -- the country fell into chaos and two clans, namely Hamdan and Himyar, claimed kingship, assuming the title King of Sheba and Dhu Raydan. Dhu Raydan ( i.e. Himyarites ) allied themselves with Aksum in Ethiopia against the Sabaeans. The chief of Bakil and king of Saba and Dhu Raydan, El Sharih Yahdhib, launched successful campaigns against the Himyarites and Habashat ( i.e. Aksum ), El Sharih took proud of his campaigns and added the title Yahdhib to his name, which means `` suppressor '' ; he used to kill his enemies by cutting them to pieces. Sana'a came into prominence during his reign as he built the Ghumdan Palace to be his place of residence. The Himyarite annexed Sana'a from Hamdan circa AD 100. Hashdi tribesmen rebelled against them, however, and regained Sana'a in around 180. It was not until 275 that Shammar Yahri'sh conquered Hadramout and Najran and Tihama, thus unifying Yemen and consolidating Himyarite rule. The Himyarites rejected polytheism and adhered to a consensual form of monotheism called Rahmanism. In 354, Roman Emperor Constantius II sent an embassy headed by Theophilos the Indian to convert the Himyarites to Christianity. According to Philostorgius, the mission was resisted by local Jews. Several inscriptions have been found in Hebrew and Sabaean praising the ruling house in Jewish terms for helping and empowering the People of Israel. According to Islamic traditions, King As'ad The Perfect mounted a military expedition to support the Jews of Yathrib. Abu Karib As'ad, as known from the inscriptions, led a military campaign to central Arabia or Najd to support the vassal Kingdom of Kindah against the Lakhmids. However, no direct reference to Judaism or Yathrib was discovered from his lengthy reign. Abu Karib As'ad died in 445 CE, having reigned for almost 50 years. By 515, Himyar became increasingly divided along religious lines and a bitter conflict between different factions paved the way for an Aksumite intervention. The last Himyarite king Mu'di Karab Ya'fir was supported by Aksum against his Jewish rivals. Mu'di Karab was Christian and launched a campaign against the Lakhmids in Southern Iraq, with the support of other Arab allies of Byzantium. The Lakhmids were a Bulwark of Persia, which was intolerant to a proselytizing religion like Christianity. After the death of Mu'di Karab Ya'fir in around 521 CE, a Himyarite Jewish warlord named Yousef Asar Yathar rose to power. His honorary title Yathar means `` to avenge ''. Yemenite Christians, aided by Aksum and Byzantium, systematically persecuted Jews and burned down several synagogues across the land. Yousef avenged his people with great cruelty. He marched toward the port city of Mocha killing 14,000 and capturing 11,000. Then he settled a camp in Bab - el - Mandeb to prevent aid flowing from Aksum. At the same time, Yousef sent an army under the command of another Jewish warlord, Sharahil Yaqbul, to Najran. Sharahil had reinforcements from the Bedouins of the Kindah and Madh'hij tribes, eventually wiping out the Christian community in Najran. Yousef or Dhu Nuwas ( The one with sidelocks ) as known in Arabic literature, believed that Christians in Yemen were a fifth column. Christian sources portray Dhu Nuwas ( Yousef Asar ) as a Jewish zealot, while Islamic traditions say that he threw 20,000 Christians into pits filled with flaming oil. This history, however, is shrouded in legend. Dhu Nuwas left two inscriptions, neither of them making any reference to fiery pits. Byzantium had to act or lose all credibility as protector of eastern Christianity. It is reported that Byzantium Emperor Justin I sent a letter to the Aksumite King Kaleb, pressuring him to `` attack the abominable Hebrew ''. A tripartite military alliance of Byzantine, Aksumite and Arab Christians successfully defeated Yousef around 525 -- 527 CE and a Christian client king was installed on the Himyarite throne. Ruins of The Great Dam of Marib Esimiphaios was a local Christian lord, mentioned in an inscription celebrating the burning of an ancient Sabaean palace in Marib to build a church on its ruins. Three new churches were built in Najran alone. Many tribes did not recognize Esimiphaios 's authority. Esimiphaios was displaced in 531 by a warrior named Abraha, who refused to leave Yemen and declared himself an independent king of Himyar. Emperor Justinian I sent an embassy to Yemen. He wanted the officially Christian Himyarites to use their influence on the tribes in inner Arabia to launch military operations against Persia. Justinian I bestowed the dignity of king upon the Arab sheikhs of Kindah and Ghassan in central and north Arabia. From early on, Roman and Byzantine policy was to develop close links with the powers of the coast of the Red Sea. They were successful in converting Aksum and influencing their culture. The results with regard to Yemen were rather disappointing. A Kendite prince called Yazid bin Kabshat rebelled against Abraha and his Arab Christian allies. A truce was reached once The Great Dam of Marib had suffered a breach. Abraha died around 555 -- 565 CE ; no reliable sources regarding his death are available. The Sasanid empire annexed Aden around 570. Under their rule, most of Yemen enjoyed great autonomy except for Aden and Sana'a. This era marked the collapse of ancient South Arabian civilization, since the greater part of the country was under several independent clans until the arrival of Islam in 630. Middle ages See also : Islamic history of Yemen Advent of Islam and the three Dynasties Main articles : Yufirids, Ziyadid Dynasty, and Imams of Yemen Interior of the Great Mosque of Sana'a, the oldest mosque in Yemen Prophet Mohammed sent his cousin Ali to Sana'a and its surroundings around 630 AD. At the time, Yemen was the most advanced region in Arabia. The Banu Hamdan confederation were among the first to accept Islam. Mohammed sent Muadh ibn Jabal as well to Al - Janad in present - day Taiz, and dispatched letters to various tribal leaders. The reason behind this was the division among the tribes and the absence of a strong central authority in Yemen during the days of the prophet. Major tribes, including Himyar, sent delegations to Medina during the Year of delegations around 630 -- 631. Several Yemenis had already accepted Islam, including Ammar ibn Yasir, Al - Ala'a Al - Hadrami, Miqdad ibn Aswad, Abu Musa Ashaari and Sharhabeel ibn Hasana. A man named ' Abhala ibn Ka'ab Al - Ansi expelled the remaining Persians and claimed to be a prophet of Rahman. He was assassinated by a Yemeni of Persian origin called Fayruz al - Daylami. Christians, who were mainly staying in Najran along with Jews, agreed to pay Jizya, although some Jews converted to Islam, such as Wahb ibn Munabbih and Ka'ab al - Ahbar. The country was stable during the Rashidun Caliphate. Yemeni tribes played a pivotal role in the Islamic conquests of Egypt, Iraq, Persia the Levant, Anatolia, North Africa, Sicily and Andalusia. Yemeni tribes that settled in Syria, contributed significantly to the solidification of Umayyad rule, especially during the reign of Marwan I. Powerful Yemenite tribes like Kindah were on his side during the Battle of Marj Rahit. Several emirates led by people of Yemeni descent were established in North Africa and Andalusia. Effective control over entire Yemen was not achieved by the Umayyad Caliphate. Imam Abdullah ibn Yahya Al - Kindi was elected in 745 to lead the Ibāḍī movement in Hadramawt and Oman. He expelled the Umayyad governor from Sana'a and captured Mecca and Medina in 746. Al - Kindi, known by his nickname Talib al - Haq ( Seeker of truth ), established the first Ibadi state in the history of Islam but was killed in Taif around 749 CE. Muhammad ibn Abdullah ibn Ziyad founded the Ziyadid dynasty in Tihama around 818 CE ; the state stretched from Haly ( In present - day Saudi Arabia ) to Aden. They nominally recognized the Abbasid Caliphate but were in fact ruling independently from their capital in Zabid. The history of this dynasty is obscure ; they never exercised control over the highlands and Hadramawt, and did not control more than a coastal strip of the Yemen ( Tihama ) bordering the Red Sea. A Himyarite clan called the Yufirids established their rule over the highlands from Saada to Taiz, while Hadramawt was an Ibadi stronghold and rejected all allegiance to the Abbasids in Baghdad. By virtue of its location, the Ziyadid dynasty of Zabid developed a special relationship with Abyssinia. The chief of the Dahlak islands exported slaves as well as amber and leopard hides to the then ruler of Yemen. The first Zaidi imam, Yahya ibn al - Husayn, arrived to Yemen in 893 CE. He was the founder of the Zaidi imamate in 897. He was a religious cleric and judge who was invited to come to Saada from Medina to arbitrate tribal disputes. Imam Yahya persuaded local tribesmen to follow his teachings. The sect slowly spread across the highlands, as the tribes of Hashid and Bakil, later known as the twin wings of the imamate, accepted his authority. Yahya established his influence in Saada and Najran ; he also tried to capture Sana'a from the Yufirids in 901, but he failed miserably. In 904, the Qarmatians invaded Sana'a. The Yufirid emir As'ad ibn Ibrahim retreated to Al - Jawf, and between 904 and 913, Sana'a was conquered no less than 20 times by Qarmatians and Yufirids. As'ad ibn Ibrahim regained Sana'a in 915 CE. The country was in turmoil as Sana'a became a battlefield for the three dynasties as well as independent tribes. The Yufirid emir Abdullah ibn Qahtan attacked and burned Zabid in 989, severely weakening the Ziyadid dynasty. The Ziyadid monarchs lost effective power after 989, or even earlier than that. Meanwhile, a succession of slaves held power in Zabid and continued to govern in the name of their masters eventually establishing their own dynasty around 1022 or 1050 CE according to different sources. Although they were recognized by the Abbasid Caliphate in Baghdad, they ruled no more than Zabid and four districts to its north. The rise of the Ismaili Shia Sulayhid dynasty in the Yemeni highlands reduced their history to a series of intrigues. Sulayhid dynasty Main article : Sulayhid dynasty Jibla became the capital of the Sulayhid dynasty The Sulayhid dynasty was founded in the northern highlands around 1040 CE. At the time, Yemen was ruled by different local dynasties. In 1060, Ali ibn Mohammed Al - Sulayhi conquered Zabid and killed its ruler Al - Najah, founder of the Najahid dynasty, whose sons were forced to flee to Dahlak. Hadramawt fell into Sulayhid hands after their capture of Aden in 1062. By 1063, Ali had subjugated Greater Yemen. He then marched toward Hejaz and occupied Makkah. Ali was married to Asma bint Shihab, who governed Yemen with her husband. The Khutba during Friday prayers was proclaimed in her husband 's and her name. No other Arab woman had this honor since the advent of Islam. Ali al - Sulayhi was killed by Najah 's sons on his way to Mecca in 1084 CE. His son Ahmad al - Mukarram led an army to Zabid and killed 8,000 of its inhabitants. He later installed the Zurayids to govern Aden. Ahmad al - Mukarram, who had been afflicted with facial paralysis resulting from war injuries, retired in 1087 and handed over power to his wife Arwa al - Sulayhi. Queen Arwa moved the seat of the Sulayhid dynasty from Sana'a to Jibla, a small town in central Yemen near Ibb. Jibla was strategically near the Sulayhid dynasty source of wealth, the agricultural central highlands. It was also within easy reach of the southern portion of the country, especially Aden. She sent Ismaili missionaries to India where a significant Ismaili community was formed that exists to this day. Queen Arwa continued to rule securely until her death in 1138. Queen Arwa al - Sulaihi Palace Arwa al - Sulayhi is still remembered as a great and much loved sovereign, as attested in Yemeni historiography, literature, and popular lore, where she is referred to as Balqis al - sughra, that is `` the junior queen of Sheba ''. Although the Sulayhids were Ismaili, they never tried to impose their beliefs on the public. Shortly after queen Arwa 's death, the country was split between five competing petty dynasties along religious lines. The Ayyubid dynasty overthrew the Fatimid caliphate in Egypt. A few years after their rise to power, Saladin dispatched his brother Turan Shah to conquer Yemen in 1174 CE. Zurayid dynasty Main article : Zurayids Al - Abbas & al - Mas'ūd sons of Karam Al - Yami from the Hamdan tribe started ruling Aden for the Sulayhids, when Al - Abbas died in 1083 CE. His son Zuray, who gave the dynasty its name, proceeded to rule together with his uncle al - Mas'ūd. They took part in the Sulayhid leader al - Mufaddal 's campaign against the Najahid capital Zabid and were both killed during the siege ( 1110 ). Their respective sons ceased to pay tribute to the Sulayhid queen Arwa al - Sulayhi. They were worsted by a Sulayhid expedition but queen Arwa agreed to reduce the tribute by half, to 50,000 dinars per year. The Zurayids again failed to pay and were once again forced to yield to the might of the Sulayhids, but this time the annual tribute from the incomes of Aden was reduced to 25,000. Later on they ceased to pay even that since Sulayhid power was on the wane. After 1110 the Zurayids thus led a more than 60 years long independent rule in the city, bolstered by the international trade. The chronicles mention luxury goods such as textiles, perfume and porcelain, coming from places like North Africa, Egypt, Iraq, Oman, Kirman and China. After the demise of queen Arwa al - Sulayhi in 1138, the Fatimids in Cairo kept a representation in Aden, adding further prestige to the Zurayids. The Zurayids were sacked by the Ayyubids in 1174 AD. Ayyubid Conquest Main article : Ayyubid Dynasty Turan Shah conquered Zabid from the Mahdids in May 1174 CE, then marched toward Aden in June and captured it from the Zurayids. The Hamdanid sultans of Sana'a resisted the Ayyubid in 1175 and it was not until 1189 that the Ayyubids managed to definitely secure Sana'a. The Ayyubid rule was stable in southern and central Yemen where they succeeded in eliminating the mini-states of that region, while Ismaili and Zaidi tribesmen continued to hold out in a number of fortresses. The Ayyubids failed to capture the Zaydis stronghold in northern Yemen. In 1191, Zaydis of Shibam Kawkaban rebelled and killed 700 Ayyubid soldiers. Imam Abdullah bin Hamza proclaimed the imamate in 1197 and fought al - Mu'izz Ismail, the Ayyubid Sultan of Yemen. Imam Abdullah was defeated at first but was able to conquer Sana'a and Dhamar in 1198 al - Mu'izz Ismail was assassinated in 1202 Abdullah bin Hamza carried on the struggle against the Ayyubid until his death in 1217. After his demise, the Zaidi community was split between two rival imams. The Zaydis were dispersed and a truce was signed with the Ayyubid in 1219. The Ayyubid army was defeated in Dhamar in 1226. Ayyubid Sultan Mas'ud Yusuf left for Mecca in 1228 never to return. Other sources suggest that he was forced to leave for Egypt instead in 1123. Rasulid dynasty Rasulid Kingdom encompassing Greater Yemen around 1264 AD Main article : Rasulid dynasty Al - Qahyra ( Cairo ) Castle 's Garden in Ta'izz, the capital of Yemen during the Rasulid 's era The Rasulid Dynasty was established in 1229 CE by Umar ibn Rasul. Umar ibn Rasul was appointed deputy governor by the Ayyubids in 1223. When the last Ayyubid ruler left Yemen in 1229, Umar stayed in the country as caretaker. He subsequently declared himself an independent king by assuming the title al - Malik Al - Mansur ( the king assisted by Allah ). Umar established the Rasulid dynasty on a firm foundation and expanded its territory to include the area from Dhofar to Mecca Umar first established himself at Zabid, then moved into the mountainous interior, taking the important highland centre Sana'a. However, the Rasulid capitals were Zabid and Ta'izz. He was assassinated by his nephew in 1249. Omar 's son Yousef defeated the faction led by his father assassins and crushed several counter-attacks by the Zaydi imams who still held on in the northern highland. It was mainly because of the victories which he scored over his rivals that he assumed the honorific title al - Muzaffar ( the victorious ). After the fall of Baghdad to the Mongols in 1258, al - Muzaffar Yusuf I appropriated the title of caliph. He chose the city of Ta'izz to become the political capital of the kingdom because of its strategic location and proximity to Aden. al - Muzaffar Yusuf I died in 1296 having reigned for 47 years. When the news of his death reached the Zaydi imam Al - Mutawakkil al - Mutahhar bin Yahya he commented by saying : The greatest king of Yemen, the Muawiyah of the time, has died. His pens used to break our lances and swords to pieces. 13th century slave market in Yemen The Rasulid state nurtured Yemen 's commercial links with India and the Far East. They profited greatly by the Red Sea transit trade via Aden and Zabid. The economy also boomed due to the agricultural development programs instituted by the kings who promoted massive cultivation of palms. It was during this period that coffee became a lucrative cash crop in Yemen. The Rasulid kings enjoyed the support of the population of Tihama and southern Yemen while they had to buy the loyalty of Yemen 's restive northern highland tribes. The Rasulid sultans built numerous Madrasas in order to solidify the Shafi'i school of thought which is still the dominant school of jurisprudence amongst Yemenis today. Under their rule, Ta'izz and Zabid became major international centers of Islamic learning. The Kings themselves were learned men in their own right who not only had important libraries but who also wrote treatises on a wide array of subjects, ranging from astrology and medicine to agriculture and genealogy. The dynasty is regarded as the greatest native Yemeni state since the fall of pre-Islamic Himyarite Kingdom. They were, of course, of Turkic descent but claimed an ancient Yemenite origin to justify their rule. The Rasulids were not the first dynasty to create a fictitious genealogy for political purposes, nor were they doing anything out of the ordinary in the tribal context of Arabia. By claiming descent from a solid Yemenite tribe, the Rasulid brought Yemen to a vital sense of unity in an otherwise chaotic regional milieu. They had a difficult relationship with the Mamluks of Egypt because the latter considered them a vassal state. Their competition centered over the Hejaz and the right to provide kiswa of the Ka'aba in Mecca. The dynasty became increasingly threatened by disgruntled family members over the problem of succession, combined by periodic tribal revolts, as they were locked in a war of attrition with the Zaydi imams in the northern highlands. During the last twelve years of Rasulid rule, the country was torn between several contenders for the kingdom. The weakening of the Rasulids provided an opportunity for the Banu Taher clan to take over and establish themselves as the new rulers of Yemen in 1454. Tahiride dynasty Main article : Tahirids ( Yemen ) The Tahirids were a local clan based in Rada'a. While they were not as impressive as their predecessors, they were still keen builders. They built schools, mosques and irrigation channels as well as water cisterns and bridges in Zabid and Aden, Rada'a, and Juban. Their best - known monument is the Amiriya Madrasa in Rada ' which was built in 1504. The Tahiride were too weak either to contain the Zaydi Imams or to defend themselves against foreign attacks. The Mamluks of Egypt tried to attach Yemen to Egypt and the Portuguese, led by Afonso de Albuquerque, occupied Socotra and launched an unsuccessful four - day siege of Aden in 1513. The Portuguese posed an immediate threat to the Indian Ocean trade ; the Mamluks of Egypt therefore sent an army under the command of Hussein Al - Kurdi to fight the intruders. The Mamluk sultan of Egypt sailed to Zabid in 1515 and began diplomatic talks with Tahiride Sultan ' Amir bin Abdulwahab for money that would be needed for jihad against the Portuguese. Instead of confronting the Portuguese, the Mamluks, who were running out of food and water, landed their fleet on the Yemen coastline and started to harass Tihama villagers for what they needed. Realizing how rich the Tahiride realm was, they decided to conquer it. The Mamluk army with the support of forces loyal to Zaydi Imam Al - Mutawakkil Yahya Sharaf ad - Din conquered the entire realm of the Tahiride but failed to capture Aden in 1517 CE. The Mamluk victory turned out to be short - lived. The Ottoman Empire conquered Egypt, hanging the last Mamluk Sultan in Cairo. It was not until 1538 that the Ottomans decided to conquer Yemen. The Zaydi Highland tribes emerged as national heroes by offering a stiff, vigorous resistance to the Turkish occupation. Modern History See also : Modern history of Yemen The Zaydis and Ottomans See also : Yemen Eyalet Al Bakiriyya Ottoman Mosque in Sana'a, was built in 1597 The Ottomans had two fundamental interests to safeguard in Yemen : The Islamic holy cities of Mecca and Medina and the trade route with India in spices and textiles, both of which were threatened and the latter virtually eclipsed by the arrival of the Portuguese in the Indian Ocean and the Red Sea in the early part of the 16th century. Hadım Suleiman Pasha, The Ottoman governor of Egypt, was ordered to command a fleet of 90 ships to conquer Yemen. The country was in a state of incessant anarchy and discord as Hadım Suleiman Pasha described it by saying : Yemen is a land with no lord, an empty province. It would be not only possible but easy to capture, and should it be captured, it would be master of the lands of India and send every year a great amount of gold and jewels to Constantinople. Imam al - Mutawakkil Yahya Sharaf ad - Din ruled over the northern highlands including Sana'a while Aden was held by the last Tahiride Sultan ' Amir ibn Dauod. Hadım Suleiman Pasha stormed Aden in 1538 CE, killing its ruler and extended Ottoman 's authority to include Zabid in 1539 and eventually Tihama in its entirety. Zabid became the administrative headquarters of Yemen Eyalet. The Ottoman governors did not exercise much control over the highlands, they held sway mainly in the southern coastal region, particularly around Zabid, Mocha and Aden. Out of 80,000 soldiers sent to Yemen from Egypt between 1539 -- 1547, only 7,000 survived. The Ottoman accountant - general in Egypt remarks : We have seen no foundry like Yemen for our soldiers. Each time we have sent an expeditionary force there, it has melted away like salt dissolved in water. The Ottoman sent yet another expeditionary force to Zabid in 1547 CE while Imam al - Mutawakkil Yahya Sharaf ad - Din was ruling the highlands independently. Imam al - Mutawakkil Yahya chose his son Ali to succeed him, a decision that infuriated his other son al - Mutahhar ibn Yahya. Al - Mutahhar was lame and therefore not qualified for the Imamate. He urged Oais Pasha, the Ottoman colonial governor in Zabid, to attack his father. Indeed, Ottoman troops supported by tribal forces loyal to Imam al - Mutahhar stormed Ta'izz and marched north toward Sana'a in August 1547. The Turks officially made Imam al - Mutahhar a Sanjak - bey with authority over ' Amran. Imam al - Mutahhar assassinated the Ottoman colonial governor and recaptured Sana'a but the Ottomans led by Özdemir Pasha, forced al - Mutahhar to retreat to his fortress in Thula. Özdemir Pasha effectively put Yemen under Ottoman rule between 1552 and 1560, he garrisoned the main cities. built new fortresses and rendered secure the main routes. Özdemir died in Sana'a in 1561 to be succeeded by Mahmud Pasha. Mahmud Pasha was described by other Ottoman officials as corrupt and unscrupulous governor, he used his authority to take over a number of castles some of which belonged to the former Rasulid Kings. Mahmud Pasha killed a Sunni scholar from Ibb. The Ottoman historian claimed that this incident was celebrated by the Zaydi Shia community in the northern highlands. Disregarding the delicate balance of power in Yemen by acting tactlessly, he alienated different groups within Yemeni society, causing them to forget their rivalries and unite against the Turks. Mahmud Pasha was displaced by Ridvan Pasha in 1564 CE. By 1565, Yemen was split into two provinces : the highlands under the command of Ridvan Pasha and Tihama under Murad Pasha. Imam al - Mutahhar launched a propaganda campaign in which he claimed contact with prophet Mohammed in a dream advising him to wage jihad against the Ottomans. Al - Mutahhar led the tribes to capture Sana'a from Ridvan Pasha in 1567. When Murad tried to relieve Sana'a, highland tribesmen ambushed his unit and slaughtered everyone of them. Over 80 battles were fought, the last decisive encounter took place in Dhamar around 1568 in which Murad Pasha was beheaded and had his head sent to al - Mutahhar in Sana'a. By 1568, only Zabid remained under the possession of the Turks. Ruins of Thula fortress in ' Amran, where al - Mutahhar ibn Yaha barricaded himself against Ottoman attacks. Lala Kara Mustafa Pasha, the Ottoman governor of Syria, was ordered by Selim II to suppress the Yemeni rebels, the Turkish army in Egypt was reluctant to go to Yemen however. Mustafa Pasha sent a letter with two Turkish shawishes hoping to persuade al - Mutahhar to give an apology and say that he did not promote any act of aggression against the Ottoman army, and claim that the ignorant Arabians according to the Turks, acted on their own. Imam al - Mutahhar refused the Ottoman offer. Mustafa Pasha sent an expeditionary force under the command of Uthman Pasha, the expeditionary force was defeated with great casualties. Sultan Selim II was infuriated by Mustafa 's hesitation to go Yemen, he executed a number of sanjak - beys in Egypt and ordered Sinan Pasha to lead the entire Turkish army in Egypt to reconquer Yemen. Sinan Pasha was a prominent Ottoman General of Albanian origin. He reconquered Aden, Ta'izz, Ibb and besieged Shibam Kawkaban in 1570 for 7 months, the siege was lifted once a truce was reached. Imam al - Mutahhar was pushed back but could not be entirely overcome. After al - Mutahhar 's demise in 1572, the Zaydi community was not united under an imam ; the Turks took advantage of their disparity and conquered Sana'a, Sa'dah and Najran in 1583. Imam al - Nasir Hassan was arrested in 1585 and exiled to Constantinople, thereby putting an end to the Yemeni rebellion. The Zaydi tribesmen in the northern highlands, particularly those of Hashid and Bakil, were a constant irritant to Turkish rule in Arabia. Justifying their presence in Yemen as a triumph for Islam, the Ottomans accused the Zaydis of being infidels. Hassan Pasha was appointed governor of Yemen, which enjoyed a period of relative peace from 1585 to 1597. Pupils of al - Mansur al - Qasim suggested that he claim the immamate and fight the Turks. He declined at first but was infuriated by the promotion of the Hanafi school of jurisprudence at the expense of Zaydi Islam. He proclaimed the Imamate in September 1597, which was the same year the Ottoman authorities inaugurated al - Bakiriyya Mosque. By 1608, Imam al - Mansur ( the victorious ) regained control over the highlands and signed a 10 - year truce with the Ottomans. When Imam al - Mansur al - Qasim died in 1620 his son Al - Mu'ayyad Muhammad succeeded him and confirmed the truce with the Ottomans. In 1627, the Ottomans lost Aden and Lahej. ' Abdin Pasha was ordered to suppress the rebels but failed and had to retreat to Mocha. After Al - Mu'ayyad Muhammad expelled the Ottomans from Sana'a in 1628, only Zabid and Mocha remained under Ottoman possession. Al - Mu'ayyad Muhammad captured Zabid in 1634 and allowed the Ottomans to leave Mocha peacefully. The reasons behind Al - Mu'ayyad Muhammad 's success were the tribes ' possession of firearms and the fact that they were unified behind him. Mocha was Yemen 's busiest port in the 17th and 18th century. In 1632 CE, Al - Mu'ayyad Muhammad sent an expeditionary force of 1000 men to conquer Mecca. The army entered the city in triumph and killed its governor. The Ottomans were not ready to lose Mecca after Yemen, so they sent an army from Egypt to fight the Yemenites. Seeing that the Turkish army was too numerous to overcome, the Yemeni army retreated to a valley outside Mecca. Ottoman troops attacked the Yemenis by hiding at the wells that supplied them with water. This plan proceeded successfully, causing the Yemenis over 200 casualties, most from thirst. The tribesmen eventually surrendered and returned to Yemen. Al - Mu'ayyad Muhammad died in 1644. He was succeeded by Al - Mutawakkil Isma'il, another son of al - Mansur al - Qasim, who conquered Yemen in its entirety, from Asir in the north to Dhofar in the east. During his reign and that of his successor, Al - Mahdi Ahmad ( 1676 -- 1681 ), the Imamate implemented some of the harshest discriminatory laws ( Ar. ghiyar ) against the Jews of Yemen, which culminated in the expulsion of all Jews ( Exile of Mawza ) to a hot and arid region in the Tihama coastal plain. The Qasimid state was the strongest Zaydi state to ever exist. During that period, Yemen was the sole Coffee producer in the world. The country established diplomatic relations with the Safavid dynasty of Persia, the Ottomans of Hejaz, the Mughal Empire in India and Ethiopia. The Fasilides of Ethiopia sent three diplomatic missions to Yemen, but the relations did not develop into a political alliance as Fasilides had hoped, due to the rise of powerful feudalists in the country. In the first half of the 18th century, the Europeans broke Yemen 's monopoly on coffee by smuggling out coffee trees and cultivating them in their own colonies in the East Indies, East Africa, the West Indies and Latin America. The imammate did not follow a cohesive mechanism for succession, and family quarrels and tribal insubordination led to the political decline of the Qasimi dynasty in the 18th century. In 1728 or 1731 the chief representative of Lahej declared himself an independent Sultan in defiance of the Qasimid Dynasty and conquered Aden thus establishing the Sultanate of Lahej. The rising power of the fervently Islamist Wahhabi movement on the Arabian Peninsula cost the Zaidi state its coastal possessions after 1803 CE. The imam was able to regain them temporarily in 1818, but new intervention by the Ottoman viceroy of Egypt in 1833 again wrested the coast from the ruler in Sana'a. After 1835 the imamate changed hands with great frequency and some imams were assassinated. After 1849 the Zaidi polity descended into chaos that lasted for decades. Great Britain and the nine regions See also : Aden Protectorate, Sultanate of Lahej, and Aden Colony Saint Joseph church in Aden was built by the British in 1850 CE and is currently abandoned. Postage stamp of the Kathiri state of Sai'yun with portrait of Sultan Jafar bin Mansur. Kathiri is Kingdom of Hadhramaut Protected / Controlled British Empire. Flag of the Colony of Aden. Queen Elizabeth II and Gulf of Aden at Yemen 35 cent Stamp. The British were looking for a coal depot to service their steamers en route to India. It took 700 tons of coal for a round - trip from Suez to Bombay. East India Company officials decided on Aden. The British Empire tried to reach an agreement with the Zaydi imam of Sana'a permitting them a foothold in Mocha ; and when unable to secure their position, they extracted a similar agreement from the Sultan of Lahej, enabling them to consolidate a position in Aden. An incident played into British hands when, while passing Aden for trading purposes, one of their sailing ships sank and Arab tribesmen boarded it and plundered its contents. The British India government dispatched a warship under the command of Captain Stafford Bettesworth Haines to demand compensation. Haines bombarded Aden from his warship in January 1839. The ruler of Lahej, who was in Aden at the time, ordered his guards to defend the port, but they failed in the face of overwhelming military and naval power. The British managed to occupy Aden and agreed to compensate the sultan with an annual payment of 6000 riyals. The British evicted the Sultan of Lahej from Aden and forced him to accept their `` protection ''. In November 1839, 5000 tribesmen tried to retake the town but were repulsed and 200 were killed. The British realized that Aden 's prosperity depended on their relations with the neighboring tribes, which required that they rest on a firm and satisfactory basis. The British government concluded `` protection and friendship '' treaties with nine tribes surrounding Aden, whereas they would remain independent from British interference in their affairs as long as they do not conclude treaties with foreigners ( non-Arab colonial powers ). Aden was declared a free zone in 1850 CE. With emigrants from India, East Africa and Southeast Asia, Aden grew into a `` world city ''. in 1850, only 980 Arabs were registered as original inhabitants of the city. The English presence in Aden put them at odds with the Ottomans. The Turks asserted to the British that they held sovereignty over the whole of Arabia, including Yemen as successor of Mohammed and the chief of the universal Caliphate. Ottoman return See also : Yemen Vilayet The Ottoman Grand Vizier and Wāli ( Governor ) of Yemen Ahmed Muhtar Pasha The Ottomans were concerned about the British expansion from India to the Red Sea and Arabia. They returned to the Tihama in 1849 after an absence of two centuries. Rivalries and disturbances continued among the Zaydi imams, between them and their deputies, with the ulema, with the heads of tribes, as well as with those who belonged to other sects. Some citizens of Sana'a were desperate to return law and order to Yemen and asked the Ottoman Pasha in Tihama to pacify the country. Yemeni merchants knew that the return of the Ottomans would improve their trade, for the Ottomans would become their customers. An Ottoman expedition force tried to capture Sana'a but was defeated and had to evacuate the highlands. The opening of the Suez Canal in 1869 strengthened the Ottomans ' decision to remain in Yemen. In 1872, military forces were dispatched from Constantinople and moved beyond the Ottoman stronghold in the lowlands ( Tihama ) to conquer Sana'a. By 1873 the Ottomans succeeded in conquering the northern highlands. Sana'a became the administrative capital of Yemen Vilayet. The Ottomans learned from their previous experience and worked on the disempowerment of local lords in the highland regions. They even attempted to secularize the Yemeni society ; Yemenite Jews came to perceive themselves in Yemeni nationalist terms. The Ottomans appeased the tribes by forgiving their rebellious chiefs and appointing them to administrative posts. They introduced a series of reforms to enhance the country 's economic welfare. On the other hand, corruption was widespread in the Ottoman administration in Yemen. This stemmed from the fact that only the worst of the officials were appointed because those who could avoid serving in Yemen did so. The Ottomans had reasserted control over the highlands for temporary duration. The so - called Tanzimat reforms were considered heretic by the Zaydi tribes. In 1876, the Hashid and Bakil tribes rebelled against the Ottomans, the Turks had to appease them with gifts to end the uprising. The tribal chiefs were difficult to appease and an endless cycle of violence curbed the Ottoman efforts to pacify the land. Ahmed Izzet Pasha proposed that the Ottoman army should evacuate the highlands and confined itself to Tihama and not to be unnecessarily burdened with continuing military operation against the Zaydi tribes. The hit - and - run tactics of the northern highlands tribesmen wore out the Ottoman military. They resented the Turkish Tanzimat and defied all attempts to impose a central government upon them. The northern tribes united under the leadership of the House of Hamidaddin in 1890. Imam Yahya Hamidaddin led a rebellion against the Turks in 1904, the rebels disrupted the Ottoman ability to govern. The revolts between 1904 and 1911 were especially damaging to the Ottomans, costing them as much as 10,000 soldier and 500,000 pound per year. The Ottomans signed a treaty with imam Yahya Hamidaddin in 1911. Under the treaty, imam Yahya was recognized as an autonomous leader of the Zaydi northern highlands. The Ottomans continued to rule Shafi'i areas in the mid-south until their departure in 1918. Idrisid emirate and Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen Main article : Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen Imam Yahya hamid ed - Din 's house in Sana'a Imam Yahya hamid ed - Din al - Mutawakkil was ruling the northern highlands independently since 1911. After the Ottoman departure in 1918 he sought to recapture the lands of his Qasimid ancestors. He dreamed of Greater Yemen stretching from Asir to Dhofar. These schemes brought him into conflict with the de facto rulers in the territories claimed, namely the Idrisids, Ibn Saud and the British government in Aden. The Zaydi imam did not recognize the Anglo - Ottoman border agreement of 1905 on the grounds that it was made between two foreign powers occupying Yemen. The border treaty effectively divided Yemen into `` north '' and `` south ''. In 1915 the British signed a treaty with the Idrisids guaranteeing their security and independence if they would fight against the Turks. In 1919, Imam Yahya moved southward to liberate the nine British protectorates. The British responded by moving quickly towards Tihama and occupying Al Hudaydah. Then they handed it over to their Idrisi allies. Imam Yahya attacked the southern protectorates again in 1922. The British bombed Yahya 's tribal forces using aircraft to which the tribes had no effective counter. In 1925, Imam Yahya captured Al Hudaydah from the Idrisids. He continued to follow and attack the Idrisids until Asir fell under the control of the Imam 's forces, forcing the Idrisids to request an agreement that would enable them to administer the region in the name of the Imam. Imam Yahya refused the offer on the grounds that the Idrisis were of a Moroccan descent. According to Imam Yahya, the Idrisids, along with the British, were nothing but recent intruders and ought to be driven out of Yemen permanently. In 1927, when Imam Yahya 's forces were 50 km away from Aden, Ta'izz and Ibb were bombed by the British for five days, and the Imam had to pull back. Small Bedouin forces mainly from the Madh'hij confederation of Marib, attacked Shabwah but were bombed by the British and had to retreat. The Italian Empire was the first to recognize Imam Yahya as the King of Yemen in 1926. This created a great deal of anxiety for the British, who interpreted it as recognition of Imam Yahya 's claim to sovereignty over Greater Yemen which included the Aden protectorate and Asir. The Idrisids turned to Ibn Saud seeking his protection from Yahya. In 1932, however, the Idrisids broke their accord with Ibn Saud and went back to Imam Yahya seeking help against Ibn Saud himself, who had begun liquidating their authority and expressed his desire to annex those territories into his own Saudi domain. Imam Yahya demanded the return of all Idrisi dominion. That same year, a group of Hejazi liberals fled to Yemen and plotted to expel Ibn Saud from the former Hashemite Kingdom of Hejaz which was conquered by the Saudis seven years earlier. Ibn Saud appealed to Britain for aid. The British government sent arms and airplanes. The British were anxious that Ibn Saud 's financial difficulties may encourage the Italian Empire to bail him out. Ibn Saud suppressed the Asiri rebellion in 1933, after which the Idrisids fled to Sana'a. Negotiations between the Imam Yahya and Ibn Saud proved fruitless. After a military confrontation, Ibn Saud announced a ceasefire in May 1934. Imam Yahya agreed to release Saudi hostages and the surrender of the Idrisis to Saudi custody. Imam Yahya ceded the three provinces of Najran, Asir and Jazan for 20 years. and signed another treaty with the British government in 1934. The Imam recognized the British sovereignty over Aden protectorate for 40 years. Yahya submitted to the Saudi and British demands out of fear for Al Hudaydah. According to Bernard Reich, Professor of Political Science and International Affairs at George Washington University, Yahya could have done better by reorganizing the Zaidi tribes of the northern highlands as his ancestors did against the Turks and British intruders and turn the lands they captured into another graveyard. Although the imamate lost Asir, it was able to put down rebel tribes in the north using Iraq - trained Yemeni troops. With the country, now established within clearly defined territory, finally pacified, the urban nationalists began to assert themselves. These nationalists had long practiced non-Zaidi traditions ( especially Shafi'i ), and were centered in the coastal province of Tahama, the city of Ta'izz and the British - occupied Aden. Many had been students in Cairo and had acquired connections with the Muslim Brotherhood and Algerian nationalists. Muslim Brotherhood operatives in Yemen aligned themselves with the urban opposition and supported Zaidi prince Abdullah bin Ahmad al - Wazir, who joined those actively seeking to overthrow Imam Yahya. On February 17, 1948 the opposition revolted in Sana'a and killed Imam Yahya. Crown prince Ahmad was able to rally northern tribes and retake the capital, quelling the revolt after a brief siege on March 12, 1948. Imam Ahmad reversed the isolationist policies of his father and opened Yemen 's economy and society to the outside world. It went as the theocratic and largely medieval Imamate which became the first Arab state to accept Soviet aid. Beginning in 1955 Yemen entered into various treaties of friendship and from 1957 began receiving large amounts of Soviet arms as well as Soviet and Chinese military advisers. When the imam went abroad owing to illness, crown prince Muhammad al - Badr led a pro-Soviet party and communist activity increased. When the Imam returned in 1959, brutal repression ensued and communists were expelled. In April 1956 Yemen joined a defensive pact with Syria and Egypt, and in February 1958 it federated with the United Arab Republic. In parallel, clan violence erupted in Yemen and Aden, claiming hundreds of lives over 1956 -- 60. The defensive pact move was conceived as a defensive measure against republican agitation, which urban nationalists still engaged in from British - occupied Aden. So long as Yemen was federated with the UAR, republicans would be deprived any assistance from Egyptian President Nasser. Although the federation only lasted for three years, crown prince al - Badr continued to portray himself as an Arab patriot, often railing against `` reactionary Arab monarchs. '' Two States Main articles : North Yemen and South Yemen Abdullah as - Sallal, North Yemen President and Dana Adams Schmidt. Arab nationalism made an impact in some circles who opposed the lack of modernization efforts in the Mutawakkilite monarchy. This became apparent when Imam Ahmad bin Yahya died in 1962. He was succeeded by his son, but army officers attempted to seize power, sparking the North Yemen Civil War. The Hamidaddin royalists were supported by Saudi Arabia, Britain, and Jordan ( mostly with weapons and financial aid, but also with small military forces ), whilst the republicans were backed by Egypt. Egypt provided the republicans with weapons and financial assistance but also sent a large military force to participate in the fighting. Israel covertly supplied weapons to the royalists in order to keep the Egyptian military busy in Yemen and make Nasser less likely to initiate a conflict in Sinai. After six years of civil war, the republicans were victorious ( February 1968 ) and formed the Yemen Arab Republic. The revolution in the north coincided with the Aden Emergency, which hastened the end of British rule in the south. On 30 November 1967, the state of South Yemen was formed, comprising Aden and the former Protectorate of South Arabia. This socialist state was later officially known as the People 's Democratic Republic of Yemen and a programme of nationalisation was begun. Relations between the two Yemeni states fluctuated between peaceful and hostile. The South was supported by the Eastern bloc. The North, however, was n't able to get the same connections. In 1972, the two states fought a war. The war was resolved with a ceasefire and negotiations brokered by the Arab League, where it was declared that unification would eventually occur. In 1978, Ali Abdallah Saleh was named as president of the Yemen Arab Republic. After the war, the North complained about the South 's help from foreign countries. This included Saudi Arabia. 1979 -- Fresh fighting between YAR and PDRY. Renewed efforts to unite the two states. 1986 -- Thousands die in south in political rivalry. President Ali Nasser Muhammad flees the country and is later sentenced to death for treason. New government formed. 1990 May -- `` Unified Republic of Yemen proclaimed, with Saleh as president. '' Unification Main article : Yemeni unification In 1990, the two governments reached a full agreement on the joint governing of Yemen, and the countries were merged on 22 May 1990 with Saleh as President. The President of South Yemen, Ali Salim al - Beidh, became Vice-President. A unified parliament was formed and a unity constitution was agreed upon. In the 1993 parliamentary election, the first held after unification, the General People 's Congress won 122 of 301 seats. After the invasion of Kuwait crisis in 1990, Yemen 's President opposed military intervention from non-Arab states. As a member of the United Nations Security Council for 1990 and 1991, Yemen abstained on a number of UNSC resolutions concerning Iraq and Kuwait and voted against the `` use of force resolution ''. The vote outraged the U.S. Saudi Arabia expelled 800,000 Yemenis in 1990 and 1991 to punish Yemen for its opposition to the war. Following food riots in major towns in 1992, a new coalition government made up of the ruling parties from both the former Yemeni states was formed in 1993. However, Vice-President al - Beidh withdrew to Aden in August 1993 and said he would not return to the government until his grievances were addressed. These included northern violence against his Yemeni Socialist Party, as well as the economic marginalization of the south. Negotiations to end the political deadlock dragged on into 1994. The government of Prime Minister Haydar Abu Bakr Al - Attas became ineffective due to political infighting An accord between northern and southern leaders was signed in Amman, Jordan on 20 February 1994, but this could not stop the civil war. During these tensions, both the northern and southern armies ( which had never integrated ) gathered on their respective frontiers. The May -- July 1994 civil war in Yemen resulted in the defeat of the southern armed forces and the flight into exile of many Yemeni Socialist Party leaders and other southern secessionists. Saudi Arabia actively aided the south during the 1994 civil war. Saleh became Yemen 's first directly elected president in the 1999 presidential election, winning 96.2 % of the vote. The only other candidate, Najeeb Qahtan Al - Sha'abi, was the son of Qahtan Muhammad al - Shaabi, a former President of South Yemen. Though a member of Saleh 's General People 's Congress ( GPC ) party, Najeeb ran as an independent. In October 2000, seventeen U.S. personnel died after a suicide attack on the U.S. naval vessel USS Cole in Aden which was subsequently blamed on al - Qaeda. After the September 11 attacks on the United States, President Saleh assured U.S. President George W. Bush that Yemen was a partner in his War on Terror. In 2001, there was violence surrounding a referendum which apparently supported extending Saleh 's rule and powers. The Shia insurgency in Yemen began in June 2004 when dissident cleric Hussein Badreddin al - Houthi, head of the Zaidi Shia sect, launched an uprising against the Yemeni government. The Yemeni government alleged that the Houthis were seeking to overthrow it and to implement Shī'a religious law. The rebels counter that they are `` defending their community against discrimination '' and government aggression. In 2005, at least 36 people were killed in clashes across the country between police and protesters over rising fuel prices. In the 2006 presidential election, held on 20 September, Saleh won with 77.2 % of the vote. His main rival, Faisal bin Shamlan, received 21.8 %. Saleh was sworn in for another term on 27 September. A suicide bomber killed eight Spanish tourists and two Yemenis in the province of Marib in July 2007. There was a series of bomb attacks on police, official, diplomatic, foreign business and tourism targets in 2008. Car bombings outside the U.S. embassy in Sana'a killed 18 people, including six of the assailants in September 2008. In 2008, an opposition rally in Sana'a demanding electoral reform was met with police gunfire. Al Qaeda In January 2009, the Saudi and Yemeni al - Qaeda branches merged to form Al - Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula ( AQAP ). Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is based in Yemen, and many of its members were Saudi nationals who had been released from Guantanamo Bay. Saleh released 176 al - Qaeda suspects on condition of good behaviour, but terrorist activities continued. The Yemeni army launched a fresh offensive against the Shia insurgents in 2009, assisted by Saudi forces. Tens of thousands of people were displaced by the fighting. A new ceasefire was agreed upon in February 2010. However, by the end of the year, Yemen claimed that 3,000 soldiers had been killed in renewed fighting. The Shia rebels accused Saudi Arabia of providing support to salafi groups to suppress Zaidism in Yemen. Saleh 's government used Al - Qaeda in its wars against the insurgent Houthis clan. Some news reports have suggested that, on orders from U.S. President Barack Obama, U.S. warplanes fired cruise missiles at what officials in Washington claimed were Al Qaeda training camps in the provinces of Sana'a and Abyan on 17 December 2009. Instead of hitting Al - Qaeda operatives, it hit a village killing 55 civilians. Officials in Yemen said that the attacks claimed the lives of more than 60 civilians, 28 of them children. Another airstrike was carried out on 24 December. The U.S. launched a series of drone attacks in Yemen to curb a perceived growing terror threat due to political chaos in Yemen. Since December 2009, U.S. strikes in Yemen have been carried out by the U.S. military with intelligence support from CIA. The drone strikes are protested by human - rights groups who say they kill innocent civilians and that the U.S. military and CIA drone strikes lack sufficient congressional oversight, including the choice of human targets suspected of being threats to America. Controversy over U.S. policy for drone attacks mushroomed after a September 2011 drone strike in Yemen killed Anwar al - Awlaki and Samir Khan, both U.S. citizens. Another drone strike in October 2011 killed Anwar 's teenage son, Abdulrahman al - Awlaki. In 2010 the Obama administration policy allowed targeting of people whose names are not known. The U.S. government increased military aid to $140 million in 2010. U.S. drone strikes continued after the ousting of President Saleh. Further information : al - Qaeda insurgency in Yemen Government instability 2011 -- present Main article : Yemeni Crisis ( 2011 -- present ) The Yemeni Crisis began with the 2011 -- 12 revolution against President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who had led Yemen for more than two decades. After Saleh left office in early 2012 as part of a mediated agreement between the Yemeni government and opposition groups, the government led by Saleh 's former vice president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, struggled to unite the fractious political landscape of the country and fend off threats both from Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula and Houthi militants that had been waging a protracted insurgency in the north for years. In 2014, Houthi fighters swept into the capital of Sana'a and forced Hadi to negotiate a `` unity government '' with other political factions. The rebels continued to apply pressure on the weakened government until, after his presidential palace and private residence came under attack from the militant group, Hadi resigned along with his ministers in January 2015. The following month, the Houthis declared themselves in control of the government, dissolving Parliament and installing an interim Revolutionary Committee led by Mohammed Ali al - Houthi, a cousin of Houthi leader Abdul - Malik al - Houthi. However, Hadi escaped to Aden, where he declared he remains Yemen 's legitimate president, proclaimed the country 's temporary capital, and called on loyal government officials and members of the military to rally to him. 2011 revolution Main article : 2011 Yemeni revolution Protest in Sana'a, 3 February 2011 Controlled by Houthis and Saleh loyalists Controlled by Hadi loyalists Controlled by al - Qaeda and Ansar al - Sharia Controlled by Southern Movement The 2011 Yemeni revolution followed other Arab Spring mass protests in early 2011. The uprising was initially against unemployment, economic conditions, and corruption, as well as against the government 's proposals to modify the constitution of Yemen so that Saleh 's son could inherit the presidency. In March 2011, police snipers opened fire on the pro-democracy camp in Sana'a, killing more than 50 people. In May, dozens were killed in clashes between troops and tribal fighters in Sana'a. By this point, Saleh began to lose international support. In October 2011, Yemeni human rights activist Tawakul Karman won the Nobel Peace Prize and the UN Security Council condemned the violence and called for a transfer of power. On 23 November 2011, Saleh flew to Riyadh, in neighbouring Saudi Arabia, to sign the Gulf Co-operation Council plan for political transition, which he had previously spurned. Upon signing the document, he agreed to legally transfer the office and powers of the presidency to his deputy, Vice President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi. Hadi took office for a two - year term upon winning the uncontested presidential elections in February 2012, in which he was the only candidate standing. A unity government -- including a prime minister from the opposition -- was formed. Al - Hadi will oversee the drafting of a new constitution, followed by parliamentary and presidential elections in 2014. 2012 Saleh returned in February 2012. In the face of objections from thousands of street protesters, parliament granted him full immunity from prosecution. Saleh 's son, General Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh continues to exercise a strong hold on sections of the military and security forces. AQAP claimed responsibility for the February 2012 suicide attack on the presidential palace which killed 26 Republican Guards on the day that President Hadi was sworn in. AQAP was also behind the suicide bombing which killed 96 soldiers in Sana'a three months later. In September 2012, a car bomb attack in Sana'a killed 11 people, a day after a local al - Qaeda leader Said al - Shihri was reported killed in the south. By 2012, there has been a `` small contingent of U.S. special - operations troops '' -- in addition to CIA and `` unofficially acknowledged '' U.S. military presence -- in response to increasing terror attacks by AQAP on Yemeni citizens. Many analysts have pointed out the former Yemeni government role in cultivating terrorist activity in the country. Following the election of new president Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, the Yemeni military was able push Ansar al - Sharia back and recapture the Shabwah Governorate. See also History of Asia History of the Middle East List of Kings of Yemen List of Presidents of Yemen Politics of Yemen South Arabia South Yemen Timeline of Yemeni history Notes Jump up ^ Arabian Peninsula, 1000 B.C. -- 1 A.D. Timeline of Art History The Metropolitan Museum of Art Jump up ^ Arabian Peninsula, 2000 -- 1000 B.C. Timeline of Art History The Metropolitan Museum of Art Jump up ^ Daniel McLaughlin Yemen : The Bradt Travel Guide p. 4 Jump up ^ Kenneth Anderson Kitchen ( 2003 ). On the Reliability of the Old Testament. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. p. 594. ISBN 0802849601. Jump up ^ Geoffrey W. Bromiley. The International Standard Bible Encyclopedia. 4. p. 254. ISBN 0802837840. Jump up ^ Nicholas Clapp ( 2002 ). Sheba : Through the Desert in Search of the Legendary Queen. Houghton Mifflin Harcourt. p. 204. ISBN 0618219269. Jump up ^ P.M. Holt ; Peter Malcolm Holt ; Ann K.S. Lambton ; Bernard Lewis ( 21 April 1977 ). The Cambridge History of Islam. Cambridge University Press. p. 7. Jump up ^ Daniel McLaughlin. ( 2007 ). Yemen : The Bradt Travel Guide p. 5 Jump up ^ Jerry R. Rogers ; Glenn Owen Brown ; Jürgen Garbrecht ( 1 January 2004 ). Water Resources and Environmental History. ASCE Publications. p. 36. ISBN 0784475504. Jump up ^ Werner Daum ( 1987 ). Yemen : 3000 Years of Art and Civilization in Arabia Felix. Pinguin - Verlag. p. 73. ISBN 3701622922. Jump up ^ `` The kingdoms of ancient South Arabia ''. British Museum. Archived from the original on 2013 - 12 - 03. Retrieved 7 February 2014. Jump up ^ Jawād ʻAlī ( 1968 ) ( Digitized 17 February 2007 ). الـمـفـصـّل في تـاريـخ العـرب قبـل الإسـلام ( Detailed history of Arabs before Islam ) ( in Arabic ). 2. Dār al - ʻIlm lil - Malāyīn. p. 19. Jump up ^ George Hatke ( 2013 ). Aksum and Nubia : Warfare, Commerce, and Political Fictions in Ancient Northeast Africa. NYU Press. p. 19. ISBN 0814762832. Jump up ^ Teshale Tibebu ( 1995 ). The making of modern Ethiopia : 1896 -- 1974. Lawrenceville, NJ : Red Sea Press. p. xvii. ISBN 1569020019. Jump up ^ Peter R. Schmidt ( 2006 ). Historical Archaeology in Africa : Representation, Social Memory, and Oral Traditions. Rowman Altamira. p. 281. ISBN 0759114153. Jump up ^ Ali Aldosari ( 2007 ). Middle East, Western Asia, and Northern Africa. Marshall Cavendish. p. 24. ISBN 0761475710. Jump up ^ D.T. Potts ( 2012 ). A Companion to the Archaeology of the Ancient Near East. John Wiley & Sons. p. 1047. ISBN 1405189886. Jump up ^ Avraham Negev ; Shimon Gibson ( 2005 ). Archaeological Encyclopedia of the Holy Land. Continuum. p. 137. ISBN 0826485715. Jump up ^ Lionel Casson ( 2012 ). The Periplus Maris Erythraei : Text with Introduction, Translation, and Commentary. Princeton University Press. p. 150. ISBN 1400843200. Jump up ^ Peter Richardson ( 1999 ). Herod : King of the Jews and Friend of the Romans. Continuum. p. 230. ISBN 0567086755. Jump up ^ Hârun Yahya ( 1999 ). Perished Nations. Global Yayincilik. p. 115. ISBN 1897940874. Jump up ^ Jan Retso ( 2013 ). The Arabs in Antiquity : Their History from the Assyrians to the Umayyads. Routledge. p. 402. ISBN 1136872825. Jump up ^ Clifford Edmund Bosworth ( 1989 ). The Encyclopedia of Islam. 6. Brill Archive. p. 561. ISBN 9004090827. Jump up ^ Stuart Munro - Hay ( 2002 ). Ethiopia, the Unknown Land : A Cultural and Historical Guide. I.B. Tauris. p. 236. ISBN 1860647448. Jump up ^ G. Johannes Botterweck ; Helmer Ringgren ( 1979 ). Theological Dictionary of the Old Testament. 3. Wm. B. Eerdmans Publishing. p. 448. ISBN 0802823270. 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The Inscription CIH 543 : A New Reading Based on the Newly - Found Original in C. Robin & M. Bafaqih ( Eds. ) Sayhadica : Recherches Sur Les Inscriptions De l'Arabie Préislamiques Offertes Par Ses Collègues Au Professeur A.F.L. Beeston. Paris : Librairie Orientaliste Paul Geuthner S.A. pp. 4 -- 5. Jump up ^ Raphael Patai ; Jennifer Patai ( 1989 ). The Myth of the Jewish Race. Wayne State University Press. p. 63. ISBN 0814319483. Jump up ^ Uwidah Metaireek Al - Juhany ( 2002 ). Najd before the Salafi reform movement : social, political and religious conditions during the three centuries preceding the rise of the Saudi state. Ithaca Press. p. 171. ISBN 0863724019. Jump up ^ Scott Johnson ( 1 November 2012 ). The Oxford Handbook of Late Antiquity. Oxford University Press. p. 266. ISBN 0195336933. ^ Jump up to : Scott Johnson ( 1 November 2012 ). The Oxford Handbook of Late Antiquity. Oxford University Press. p. 282. ISBN 0195336933. Jump up ^ Irfan Shahîd ( 1989 ). Byzantium and the Arabs in the Fifth Century. Dumbarton Oaks. p. 65. ISBN 0884021521. Jump up ^ Ken Blady ( 2000 ). Jewish Communities in Exotic Places. Jason Aronson. p. 9. ISBN 146162908X. Jump up ^ Eric Maroney ( 2010 ). The Other Zions : The Lost Histories of Jewish Nations. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 94. ISBN 1442200456. Jump up ^ Joan Comay ; Lavinia Cohn - Sherbok ( 2 November 1995 ). Who 's who in Jewish history after the period of the Old Testament. Oxford University Press. p. 391. ISBN 0195210794. Jump up ^ Cite error : The named reference Ken Blady p. 9 was invoked but never defined ( see the help page ). Jump up ^ D.W. Phillipson ( 2012 ). Foundations of an African Civilisation : Aksum and the Northern Horn, 1000 BC -- AD 1300. Boydell & Brewer Ltd. p. 204. ISBN 1847010415. ^ Jump up to : Angelika Neuwirth ; Nicolai Sinai ; Michael Marx ( 2010 ). The Quran in Context : Historical and Literary Investigations Into the Quranic Milieu. BRILL. p. 49. 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The History of al - Tabari Vol. 12 : The Battle of al - Qadisiyyah and the Conquest of Syria and Palestine A.D. 635 - 637 / A.H. 14 -- 15 p. 10 - 11 SUNY Press. ISBN 0791407330 Jump up ^ Idris El Hareir. ( 2011 ). The Spread of Islam Throughout the World, p. 380. UNESCO ISBN 9231041533 Jump up ^ Nejla M. Abu Izzeddin. ( 1993 ). The Druzes : A New Study of Their History, Faith, and Society. BRILL ISBN 9004097058 Jump up ^ Hugh Kennedy. ( 2013 ). The Armies of the Caliphs : Military and Society in the Early Islamic State p. 33 Routledge, 17 June 2013 ISBN 1134531133 ^ Jump up to : Andrew Rippin The Islamic World p. 237 Routledge, 23 October 2013 ISBN 1136803432 ^ Jump up to : Paul Wheatley. ( 2001 ). The Places Where Men Pray Together : Cities in Islamic Lands, Seventh Through the Tenth Centuries. p. 128. University of Chicago Press ISBN 0226894282 Jump up ^ Kamal Suleiman Salibi. ( 1980 ). A History of Arabia p. 108 Caravan Books, OCLC Number : 164797251 Jump up ^ Paul Lunde, Alexandra Porter ( 2004 ). Trade and travel in the Red Sea Region : proceedings of Red Sea project I held in the British Museum, October 2002. Archaeopress. p. 20. ISBN 1841716227. in 976 -- 77 AD (... ) the then ruler of Yemen received slaves, as well as amber and leopard skins from the chief of the Dahlak islands ( off the coast from Massawa ). Jump up ^ Stephen W. Day. ( 2012 ). Regionalism and Rebellion in Yemen : A Troubled National Union p. 31 Cambridge University Press ISBN 1107022150 Jump up ^ Gerhard Lichtenthäler. ( 2003 ). Political Ecology and the Role of Water : Environment, Society and Economy in Northern Yemen, p. 55. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. ISBN 0754609081 Jump up ^ First Encyclopaedia of Islam : 1913 -- 1936 p. 145 BRILL, 1993 ISBN 9004097961 Jump up ^ E.J. Van Donzel. ( 1994 ). Islamic Desk Reference p. 492 BRILL ISBN 9004097384 Jump up ^ Mohammed Abdo Al - Sururi ( 1987 ). الحياة السياسية ومظاهر الحضارة في اليمن في عهد الدول المستقلة ( political life and aspects of civilization in Yemen during the reign of Independent States ) ( in Arabic ). University of Sana'a. p. 237. Jump up ^ Henry Cassels Kay ( 1999 ). Yaman its early medieval history. Adegi Graphics LLC. p. 14. ISBN 1421264641. Jump up ^ J.D. Fage, Roland Anthony Oliver. ( 1977 ). The Cambridge History of Africa, Volume 3 p. 119 Cambridge University Press ISBN 0521209811 Jump up ^ William Charles Brice. ( 1981 ). An Historical Atlas of Islam ( cartographic Material ), p. 338. BRILL ISBN 9004061169 Jump up ^ Farhad Daftary. ( 2005 ). Ismailis in Medieval Muslim Societies : A Historical Introduction to an Islamic Community p. 92 I.B. Tauris ISBN 1845110919 Jump up ^ Farhad Daftary. ( 2007 ). The Isma'ilis : Their History and Doctrines, p. 199. 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Jump up ^ Mohammed Abdo Al - Sururi ( 1987 ). الحياة السياسية ومظاهر الحضارة في اليمن في عهد الدو المستقلة ( political life and aspects of civilization in Yemen during the reign of Independent States ) ( in Arabic ). University of Sana'a. p. 414. Jump up ^ Mohammed Abdo Al - Sururi ( 1987 ). الحياة السياسية ومظاهر الحضارة في اليمن في عهد الدو المستقلة ( political life and aspects of civilization in Yemen during the reign of Independent States ) ( in Arabic ). University of Sana'a. p. 303. Jump up ^ Alexander Mikaberidze ( 2011 ). Conflict and Conquest in the Islamic World : A Historical Encyclopedia. ABC - CLIO. p. 159. ISBN 1598843370. Jump up ^ The chronology of the Zurayid rulers is uncertain for the most part ; dates furnished by Ayman Fu'ad Sayyid, Masadir ta'rikh al - Yaman fial ' asr al - islami, al Qahira 1974, are partly at odds with those given by H.C. Kay, Yaman : Its early Medieval history, London 1892 ; one source seems to indicate that they were independent as early as 1087. Jump up ^ H.C. Kay, Yaman : Its early medieval history, London 1892, pp. 66 -- 67. Jump up ^ El - Khazreji, The pearl - strings, Vol. 1, Leyden & London 1906, p. 19. Jump up ^ Robert W. Stookey, Yemen : The politics of the Yemen Arab Republic, Boulder 1978, p. 96. Jump up ^ Mohammed Abdo Al - Sururi ( 1987 ). الحياة السياسية ومظاهر الحضارة في اليمن في عهد الدو المستقلة ( political life and aspects of civilization in Yemen during the reign of Independent States ) ( in Arabic ). University of Sana'a. p. 311. ^ Jump up to : Farhad Daftary ( 2007 ). The Isma'ilis : Their History and Doctrines. Cambridge University Press. p. 260. ISBN 1139465783. Jump up ^ Josef W. Meri ( 2004 ). Medieval Islamic Civilization. Psychology Press. p. 871. ISBN 0415966906. Jump up ^ Mohammed Abdo Al - Sururi ( 1987 ). الحياة السياسية ومظاهر الحضارة في اليمن في عهد الدول المستقلة ( political life and aspects of civilization in Yemen during the reign of Independent States ) ( in Arabic ). University of Sana'a. p. 350. Jump up ^ Mohammed Abdo Al - Sururi ( 1987 ). الحياة السياسية ومظاهر الحضارة في اليمن في عهد الدول المستقلة ( political life and aspects of civilization in Yemen during the reign of Independent States ) ( in Arabic ). University of Sana'a. p. 354. Jump up ^ Mohammed Abdo Al - Sururi ( 1987 ). الحياة السياسية ومظاهر الحضارة في اليمن في عهد الدول المستقلة ( political life and aspects of civilization in Yemen during the reign of Independent States ) ( in Arabic ). University of Sana'a. p. 371. ^ Jump up to : Mohammed Abdo Al - Sururi ( 1987 ). الحياة السياسية ومظاهر الحضارة في اليمن في عهد الدول المستقلة ( political life and aspects of civilization in Yemen during the reign of Independent States ) ( in Arabic ). 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Sana : An Arabian Islamic City. World of Islam Festival Pub. Co. p. 70. ISBN 0905035046. ^ Jump up to : Halil İnalcık ; Donald Quataert ( 1994 ). An Economic and Social History of the Ottoman Empire, 1300 -- 1914. Cambridge University Press. p. 333. ISBN 0521343151. ^ Jump up to : Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad Nahrawālī ( 2002 ). Lightning Over Yemen : A History of the Ottoman Campaign in Yemen, 1569 -- 71 ( البرق اليماني في الفتح العثماني ) ( in Arabic ). OI. B. Tauris. p. 132. ISBN 1860648363. Jump up ^ Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad Nahrawālī ( 2002 ). Lightning Over Yemen : A History of the Ottoman Campaign in Yemen, 1569 -- 71 ( البرق اليماني في الفتح العثماني ) ( in Arabic ). OI. B. Tauris. p. 134. ISBN 1860648363. ^ Jump up to : Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad Nahrawālī ( 2002 ). Lightning Over Yemen : A History of the Ottoman Campaign in Yemen, 1569 -- 71 ( البرق اليماني في الفتح العثماني ) ( in Arabic ). OI. B. Tauris. p. 180. ISBN 1860648363. ^ Jump up to : Abdul Ali ( 1996 ). 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Tauris. p. 210. ISBN 1860648363. Jump up ^ Nancy Um ( 2009 ). he merchant houses of Mocha : trade and architecture in an Indian Ocean port. University of Washington Press. p. 19. ISBN 0295989106. Jump up ^ Robert W. Stookey ( 1978 ). Yemen : the politics of the Yemen Arab Republic. Westview Press. p. 141. ISBN 0891583009. ^ Jump up to : Michel Tuchscherer. `` Chronologie du Yémen ( 1506 -- 1635 ) ', Chroniques yémenites ''. Retrieved 3 February 2014. Jump up ^ Harold F. Jacob ( 2007 ). Kings of Arabia : The Rise and Set of the Turkish Sovranty in the Arabian Peninsula. Garnet & Ithaca Press. p. 70. ISBN 1859641989. Jump up ^ Muḥammad ibn Aḥmad Nahrawālī ( 2002 ). Lightning Over Yemen : A History of the Ottoman Campaign in Yemen, 1569 -- 71 ( البرق اليماني في الفتح العثماني ) ( in Arabic ). OI. B. Tauris. p. 197. ISBN 1860648363. Jump up ^ ' Abd al - Samad al - Mawza'i ( 1986 ). al - Ihsan fî dukhûl Mamlakat al - Yaman taht zill Adalat al - ' Uthman ( الإحسان في دخول مملكة اليمن تحت ظل عدالة آل عثمان ) ( in Arabic ). New Generation Library. pp. 99 -- 105. Jump up ^ Amira Maddah ( 1982 ). l - Uthmâniyyun wa - l - Imam al - Qasim b. Muhammad b. Ali fo - l - Yaman ( العثمانيون والإمام القاسم بن محمد في اليمن ) ( in Arabic ). p. 839. Jump up ^ Musflafâ Sayyid Salim ( 1974 ). al - Fath al - ' Uthmani al - Awwal li - l - Yaman ( الفتح العثماني الأول لليمن ) ( in Arabic ). p. 357. ^ Jump up to : Accounts and Extracts of the Manuscripts in the Library of the King of France. 2. R. Faulder. 1789. p. 75. ^ Jump up to : Accounts and Extracts of the Manuscripts in the Library of the King of France. 2. R. Faulder. 1789. p. 76. Jump up ^ Accounts and Extracts of the Manuscripts in the Library of the King of France. 2. R. Faulder. 1789. p. 78. Jump up ^ Kjetil Selvik ; Stig Stenslie ( 2011 ). Stability and Change in the Modern Middle East. I.B. Tauris. p. 90. ISBN 1848855893. Jump up ^ Anna Hestler ; Jo - Ann Spilling ( 2010 ). Yemen. Marshall Cavendish. p. 23. ISBN 0761448500. Jump up ^ Richard N. Schofield ( 1994 ). Territorial foundations of the Gulf states. UCL Press. p. 90. ISBN 1857281217. Jump up ^ Robert D. Burrowes ( 2010 ). Historical Dictionary of Yemen. Rowman & Littlefield. p. 295. ISBN 0810855283. Jump up ^ Nelly Hanna ( 2005 ). Society and Economy in Egypt and the Eastern Mediterranean, 1600 -- 1900 : Essays in Honor of André Raymond. American Univ in Cairo Press. p. 124. ISBN 9774249372. Jump up ^ Roman Loimeier ( 2013 ). Muslim Societies in Africa : A Historical Anthropology. Indiana University Press. p. 193. ISBN 0253007976. Jump up ^ Marta Colburn ( 2002 ). The Republic of Yemen : Development Challenges in the 21st Century. CIIR. p. 15. ISBN 1852872497. Jump up ^ Ari Ariel ( 2013 ). Jewish - Muslim Relations and Migration from Yemen to Palestine in the Late Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries. BRILL. p. 24. ISBN 9004265376. Jump up ^ R.L. Playfair ( 1859 ), A History of Arabia Felix or Yemen. Bombay ; R.B. Serjeant & R. Lewcock ( 1983 ), San'a ' : An Araban Islamic City. London. ^ Jump up to : Caesar E. Farah ( 2002 ). The Sultan 's Yemen : 19th Century Challenges to Ottoman Rule. I.B. Tauris. p. 120. ISBN 1860647677. Jump up ^ Caesar E. Farah ( 2002 ). The Sultan 's Yemen : 19th - Century Challenges to Ottoman Rule. I.B. Tauris. p. 124. ISBN 1860647677. Jump up ^ Caesar E. Farah ( 2002 ). The Sultan 's Yemen : 19th Century Challenges to Ottoman Rule. I.B. Tauris. p. 121. ISBN 1860647677. Jump up ^ R.J. Gavin ( 1975 ). Aden Under British Rule, 1839 -- 1967. C. Hurst & Co. Publishers. p. 60. ISBN 0903983141. Jump up ^ Caesar E. Farah ( 2002 ). The Sultan 's Yemen : 19th Century Challenges to Ottoman Rule. I.B. Tauris. p. 132. ISBN 1860647677. ^ Jump up to : Caesar E. Farah ( 2002 ). The Sultan 's Yemen : 19th Century Challenges to Ottoman Rule. I.B. Tauris. p. 120. ISBN 1860647677. Jump up ^ Reeva S. Simon ; Michael Menachem Laskier ; Sara Reguer ( 2013 ). The Jews of the Middle East and North Africa in Modern Times. Columbia University Press. p. 390. ISBN 0231507593. Jump up ^ Caesar E. Farah ( 2002 ). The Sultan 's Yemen : 19th - Century Challenges to Ottoman Rule. I.B. Tauris. p. 59. ISBN 1860647677. Jump up ^ Derryl N. Maclean ; Sikeena Karmali Ahmed ( 2012 ). Cosmopolitanisms in Muslim Contexts : Perspectives from the Past. Edinburgh University Press. p. 54. ISBN 0748644563. ^ Jump up to : B.Z. Eraqi Klorman ( 1993 ). The Jews of Yemen in the Nineteenth Century : A Portrait of a Messianic Community. BRILL. p. 11. ISBN 9004096841. Jump up ^ Ari Ariel ( 2013 ). Jewish - Muslim Relations and Migration from Yemen to Palestine in the Late Nineteenth and Twentieth Centuries. BRILL. p. 37. ISBN 9004265376. ^ Jump up to : Doğan Gürpınar ( 2013 ). Ottoman / Turkish Visions of the Nation, 1860 -- 1950. Palgrave Macmillan. p. 71. ISBN 1137334215. Jump up ^ Caesar E. Farah ( 2002 ). The Sultan 's Yemen : 19th - Century Challenges to Ottoman Rule. I.B. Tauris. p. 96. ISBN 1860647677. Jump up ^ B.Z. Eraqi Klorman ( 1993 ). The Jews of Yemen in the Nineteenth Century : A Portrait of a Messianic Community. BRILL. p. 12. ISBN 9004096841. Jump up ^ Eugene L. Rogan ( 2002 ). Frontiers of the State in the Late Ottoman Empire : Transjordan, 1850 -- 1921. Cambridge University Press. ISBN 0521892236. Jump up ^ Clive Leatherdale ( 1983 ). Britain and Saudi Arabia, 1925 -- 1939 : The Imperial Oasis. Psychology Press. p. 140. ISBN 0714632201. Jump up ^ Nikshoy C. Chatterji ( 1973 ). Muddle of the Middle East, Volume 1. Abhinav Publications. p. 197. ISBN 0391003046. Jump up ^ Harold F. Jacob ( 2007 ). Kings of Arabia : The Rise and Set of the Turkish Sovereignty in the Arabian Peninsula. Garnet & Ithaca Press. p. 82. ISBN 1859641989. Jump up ^ James Minahan ( 2002 ). Encyclopedia of the Stateless Nations : A-C. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 195. ISBN 0313321094. Jump up ^ Bernard Reich ( 1990 ). Political Leaders of the Contemporary Middle East and North Africa : A Biographical Dictionary. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 508. ISBN 0313262136. ^ Jump up to : Paul Dresch ( 2000 ). A History of Modern Yemen. Cambridge University Press. p. 34. ISBN 052179482X. ^ Jump up to : Bernard Reich ( 1990 ). Political Leaders of the Contemporary Middle East and North Africa : A Biographical Dictionary. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 509. ISBN 0313262136. Jump up ^ Ameen Rihani ( 1960 ). Kings of the Arabs ( Muluk al - Arab ). Beirut : Dar al - Rihani. p. 214,215,216. Jump up ^ Massimiliano Fiore ( 2010 ). Anglo - Italian Relations in the Middle East, 1922 -- 1940. Ashgate Publishing, Ltd. p. 21. ISBN 0754697479. ^ Jump up to : Madawi al - Rasheed ( 2002 ). A History of Saudi Arabia. Cambridge University Press. p. 101. ISBN 0521644127. Jump up ^ Bernard Reich ( 1990 ). Political Leaders of the Contemporary Middle East and North Africa : A Biographical Dictionary. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 509. ISBN 9780313262135. ^ Jump up to : Madawi al - Rasheed. A History of Saudi Arabia. Cambridge University Press. p. 97. ISBN 052176128X. Jump up ^ Raymond A. Hinnebusch ; Anoushiravan Ehteshami ( 2002 ). The Foreign Policies of Middle East States. Lynne Rienner Publishers. p. 262. ISBN 1588260208. Jump up ^ Glen Balfour - Paul ( 1994 ). The End of Empire in the Middle East : Britain 's Relinquishment of Power in Her Last Three Arab Dependencies. Cambridge University Press. p. 60. ISBN 0521466369. Jump up ^ Bernard Reich ( 1990 ). Political Leaders of the Contemporary Middle East and North Africa : A Biographical Dictionary. Greenwood Publishing Group. p. 510. ISBN 9780313262135. Jump up ^ Reinhard Schulze ( 2002 ). A Modern History of the Islamic World. New York University Press. pp. 136 -- 37. ISBN 0 - 8147 - 9819 - 5. ( Hereafter `` Schulze. '' ) Jump up ^ Peter Partner ( 1960 ). A Short Political Guide to the Arab World. Frederick A. Praeger. pp. 195 -- 96. Jump up ^ Schulze, p. 157. Jump up ^ F. Gregory Gause ( 1990 ). Saudi - Yemeni Relations : Domestic Structures and Foreign Influence. Books.google.com. Columbia University Press. p. 60. ISBN 978 - 0 - 231 - 07044 - 7. Retrieved 22 February 2013. Jump up ^ Dresch, Paul ( 2000 ). A History of Modern Yemen. Books.google.com. Cambridge University Press. p. 115. ISBN 978 - 0 - 521 - 79482 - 4. Retrieved 22 February 2013. Jump up ^ Schmitthoff, Clive Macmillan, Clive M. Schmitthoff 's select essays on international trade law p. 390 ^ Jump up to : `` Yemen profile ( timeline ) ''. BBC. 26 October 2013. Retrieved 14 December 2013. 1978 -- Ali Abdallah Saleh named as president of YAR. Jump up ^ Dresch, Paul ( 2000 ). A History of Modern Yemen. Cambridge University Press. pp. 120 -- 124. ^ Jump up to : Nohlen, Dieter ; Grotz, Florian ; Hartmann, Christof, eds. ( 2001 ). Elections in Asia : A data handbook, Volume I. Books.google.com. Oxford : Oxford University Press. pp. 309 -- 310. ISBN 978 - 0 - 199 - 24958 - 9. Retrieved 7 April 2011. Jump up ^ `` Persian Gulf War, Desert Storm -- War with Iraqi ''. Laughtergenealogy.com. Archived from the original on 22 January 2004. Retrieved 22 February 2013. Jump up ^ `` Country Profile : Yemen '' ( PDF ). Library of Congress -- Federal Research Division. August 2008. Retrieved 7 April 2010. Jump up ^ `` Fighting al - Qaeda : The Role of Yemen 's President Saleh ''. Realclearworld.com. 17 December 2009. Archived from the original on 11 May 2013. Retrieved 22 February 2013. Jump up ^ Hill, Ginny ( 1 April 2009 ). `` Yemen 's point of no return ''. London : The Guardian. Retrieved 22 February 2013. Jump up ^ `` Civil war ''. Yca-sandwell.org.uk. Yementi Community Association in Sandwell. Retrieved 23 February 2013. Jump up ^ U.S. Department of State. Background Notes : Mideast, March 2011. InfoStrategist.com. ISBN 978 - 1 - 59243 - 126 - 7. Jump up ^ Pike, John. `` Yemeni Civil War ( 1990 - 1994 ) ''. Retrieved 2018 - 02 - 01. Jump up ^ `` Yemen timeline ''. BBC. 28 November 2012. Retrieved 23 February 2013. Jump up ^ John Pike ( 11 July 2011 ). `` Yemeni Civil War ( 1990 -- 1994 ) ''. Global Security. Retrieved 22 February 2013. ( Requires 3rd - party cookies ) Jump up ^ `` In eleventh - hour reversal, President Saleh announces candidacy ''. IRIN. 25 June 2006. Retrieved 14 December 2010. Jump up ^ `` Deadly blast strikes Yemen mosque ''. BBC News. 2 May 2008. Retrieved 23 May 2008. Jump up ^ `` President Ali Abdullah Saleh Web Site ''. Presidentsaleh.gov.ye. Archived from the original on 19 December 2010. Retrieved 18 November 2010. Jump up ^ `` Saleh re-elected president of Yemen ''. Al Jazeera. 23 September 2006. Retrieved 14 December 2010. Jump up ^ `` Yemeni president takes constitutional oath for his new term ''. News.xinhaunet.com. Xinhua. 27 September 2006. Retrieved 14 December 2010. Jump up ^ Daniel Cassman. `` Al - Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula ''. Stanford University. Retrieved 22 February 2013. Jump up ^ `` Regime and Periphery in Northern Yemen : The Huthi Phenomenon '' ( PDF ). 17 September 2010. Retrieved 22 February 2013. Jump up ^ `` Yemen 's Forever War : The Houthi Rebellion ''. Washington Institute. Retrieved 22 February 2013. Jump up ^ Ross, Brian ; Esposito, Richard ; Cole, Matthew ; et al. ( 18 December 2009 ). `` Obama Ordered U.S. Military Strike on Yemen Terrorists ''. ABC News. New York. Jump up ^ `` Losing Yemen : How this forgotten corner of the Arabian Peninsula became the most dangerous country in the world ''. Foreign Policy. Washington DC. 5 November 2012. Archived from the original on 30 May 2013. Retrieved 22 February 2013. Jump up ^ `` In wake of airline incident : Drumbeat for US war in Yemen ''. The Intelligence Daily. 30 December 2009. Archived from the original on 1 January 2010. Jump up ^ Hakim Almasmari ( 31 January 2013 ). `` US makes a drone attack a day in Yemen ''. The National. Abu Dhabi. Retrieved 22 February 2013. Jump up ^ Siobhan Gorman ; Adam Entous ( 14 June 2011 ). `` CIA Plans Drone Strikes in Yemen ''. Wall Street Journal. New York. Retrieved 22 February 2013. Jump up ^ Adam Entous ; Siobhan Gorman ; Julian E. Barnes ( 26 April 2012 ). `` U.S. Relaxes Drone Rules ''. Wall Street Journal. New York. Jump up ^ `` Memo on Drone Strikes Draws Scrutiny ''. Wall Street Journal. New York. 5 February 2013. Archived from the original on 6 February 2013. ( subscription required ) Jump up ^ Wheaton, Sarah ( 10 January 2010 ). `` Obama Plays Down Military Role in Yemen ''. New York Times. Retrieved 10 January 2010. Jump up ^ Andrew Katz : U.S. Officials : Drone Strike That Hit Yemen Wedding Convoy Killed Militants, Not Civilians, 20 December 2013. Jump up ^ Hendawi, Hamza ( 12 October 2014 ). `` Yemen 's crisis reflects arc of Arab Spring revolts ''. Yahoo ! News. Retrieved 8 February 2015. Jump up ^ al - Naggar, Mona ( 6 February 2015 ). `` In Yemen, Hard Times Remain a Constant as Rebels Take Charge ''. The New York Times. Retrieved 6 February 2015. Jump up ^ `` Meet The Group That Now Rules Yemen ''. BuzzFeed. 6 February 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2015. Jump up ^ `` Al - Qaeda thrives in Yemen amid weak security, stalled dialogue ''. Al Arabiya. 6 February 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2015. Jump up ^ al - Haj, Ahmed ( 6 February 2015 ). `` Yemen 's Shiite rebels announce takeover of country ''. The Columbian. Retrieved 6 February 2015. Jump up ^ `` Houthi militia installs ' presidential council ' to run Yemen ''. Middle East Eye. 6 February 2015. Retrieved 6 February 2015. Jump up ^ `` Yemen 's Hadi denies Aden secession ''. Anadolu Agency. 21 March 2015. Retrieved 22 March 2015. Jump up ^ Kerr, Simeon ( 26 February 2015 ). `` UN and Gulf back Yemeni president Hadi amid fears of civil war ''. Financial Times. Retrieved 22 March 2015. Jump up ^ Lewis, Alexandra ( May 2012 ). `` Changing Seasons : The Arab Spring 's Position Within the Political Evolution of the Yemeni State '' ( PDF ). Post-war Reconstruction and Development Unit Working Paper Series. 3. Jump up ^ Ghosh, Bobby ( 17 September 2012 ). `` The End of Al - Qaeda ? ''. Time. New York. Retrieved 24 September 2012. Jump up ^ `` Whose Side Is Yemen On ? ''. Foreign Policy. Washington, D.C. 29 August 2012. Archived from the original on 30 May 2013. Retrieved 22 February 2013. References Original text from U.S. State Dept. Country Study ( 1 ) : DAUM, W. ( ed. ) : Yemen. 3000 years of art and civilisation in Arabia Felix., Innsbruck / Frankfurt am Main / Amsterdam ( 1988 ). pp. 53 -- 4. History of Yemen at the Wayback Machine ( archived 2006 - 08 - 23 ) Timeline of Art History of Arabia including Yemen ( The Metropolitan Museum of Art ). A Dam at Marib Das Fenster zum Jemen ( German ) Geschichte des Jemen ( German ) at the Wayback Machine ( archived 2012 - 02 - 05 ) History of Yemen at the Wayback Machine ( archived 2008 - 02 - 12 ) Further Reading Alessandro de Maigret. Arabia Felix, translated Rebecca Thompson. London : Stacey International, 2002. ISBN 1 - 900988 - 07 - 0 Andrey Korotayev. Ancient Yemen. Oxford : Oxford University Press, 1995. ISBN 0 - 19 - 922237 - 1 ( 1 ). External links Wikimedia Commons has media related to History of Yemen. A Dam at Marib state.gov at the Wayback Machine ( archived 2004 - 09 - 13 ) History of Yemen at the Wayback Machine ( archived 2008 - 02 - 12 ) Yemenite Virtual Museum at the Library of Congress Web Archives ( archived 2002 - 09 - 30 ) -- excellent site with many pictures. Encyclopedia of the Nations, Asia and Oceania, Yemen History of Asia Sovereign states Afghanistan Armenia Azerbaijan Bahrain Bangladesh Bhutan Brunei Cambodia China Cyprus East Timor ( Timor - Leste ) Egypt Georgia India Indonesia Iran Iraq Israel Japan Jordan Kazakhstan North Korea South Korea Kuwait Kyrgyzstan Laos Lebanon Malaysia Maldives Mongolia Myanmar Nepal Oman Pakistan Philippines Qatar Russia Saudi Arabia Singapore Sri Lanka Syria Tajikistan Thailand Turkey Turkmenistan United Arab Emirates Uzbekistan Vietnam Yemen States with limited recognition Abkhazia Artsakh Northern Cyprus Palestine South Ossetia Taiwan Dependencies and other territories British Indian Ocean Territory Christmas Island Cocos ( Keeling ) Islands Hong Kong Macau Retrieved from `` https://en.wikipedia.org/w/index.php?title=History_of_Yemen&oldid=851818677 '' Categories : History of Yemen Hidden categories : Pages with reference errors CS1 uses Arabic - language script ( ar ) CS1 Arabic - language sources ( ar ) Pages with broken reference names Pages containing links to subscription - only content All articles with dead external links Articles with dead external links from December 2013 All articles with unsourced statements Articles with unsourced statements from December 2013 Wikipedia articles in need of updating from April 2015 All Wikipedia articles in need of updating Webarchive template wayback links Webarchive template other archives Talk Contents About Wikipedia Asturianu Azərbaycanca বাংলা Башҡортса Български Català Čeština Dansk Deutsch Español Euskara Français Hrvatski Ido Italiano עברית Lietuvių Bahasa Melayu Nederlands Português Русский Shqip Srpskohrvatski / српскохрватски Svenska Українська 中文 18 more Edit links This page was last edited on 24 July 2018, at 20 : 18 ( UTC ). 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Question: which empire controlled the holy cities of mecca and medina in the 1500s
Answer: Ottoman