In international politics and throughout academic literature, the current civil war in Yemen (2015-present) has regularly been discussed as being a proxy war between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and...Show moreIn international politics and throughout academic literature, the current civil war in Yemen (2015-present) has regularly been discussed as being a proxy war between the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the Islamic Republic of Iran. As a consequence, the international community’s military interference in what has been labelled by the United Nations as the worst humanitarian crisis in the world has been rather limited. This research aims to counter the general proxy warfare narrative, and to provide an alternative explanation of the causes and dynamics of Yemen’s devastating conflict. Therefore, this thesis will critically analyze the context, development of events, and transformation of the war in Yemen and discuss how to characterize the internationalization of Yemen’s internal conflict over the period 2014-2018. To formulate an answer to this question, the thesis will first discuss the Saudi-Iranian rivalry in the contemporary Middle East and the use of proxy warfare in their regional balance of power. Then, the theoretical framework of internationalization of civil war will be discussed to explicate the connection between domestic and international dimensions of conflicts. Next, the thesis will analyse the internal social and political causes of the war in Yemen to assess the original nature of the conflict, and discuss the developments from the outbreak of the civil war to its present internationalized condition. Together with an analysis of the extent and motivations of the Saudi and Iranian military interventions in the conflict, this research will develop the argument that the war in Yemen (2014-2018) is essentially an internationalized civil war. The proxy warfare narrative fails to accurately describe the causes, dynamics, and international intervention processes of this internationalized internal conflict, and the use of this rhetoric by Saudi Arabia should be interpreted as a political tool to justify its military intervention in Yemen’s domestic struggles to secure its own regional strategic objectives. Moreover, the limited support of Iran to the Houthis remains far too marginal to have any significant impact on the balance of power in Yemen. The research and arguments will be substantiated by academic study of regional politics experts and by analysing UN reports, reportages from independent journalists, and interviews with policymakers. Understanding the highly local and non-ideological origins and dimensions of the war in Yemen is fundamental to any future attempts at conflict resolution at the international level. Analysing the process of internationalization, as well as the contemporary nature of the conflict, will provide significant insights regarding what type of mediation would be most effective. Furthermore, emphasizing the escalated and internationalized nature of the Yemeni civil war since its outbreak in 2015, as opposed to the general proxy warfare narrative, will hopefully contribute to the international community’s recognition of the necessity and responsibility to resolve this humanitarian disaster. Academically, the research will contribute to the academic body of literature on the internationalization of internal conflicts. In addition, 1 this thesis will generate a greater understanding of proxy warfare and expose the dangers of the use of proxy war frames.Show less
