The Saudi-led coalition has been fighting a losing battle in Yemen, and Riyadh’s own economic problems make a long-running war there unsustainable.
IT HAS BEEN MORE THAN 16 MONTHS SINCE the military coalition led by Saudi Arabia launched a war on Yemen, the poorest nation in the Arabian peninsula. The other members of the military coalition are the United Arab Emirates (UAE), Bahrain, Egypt, Sudan, Morocco and Kuwait. Most of the bombing raids are being conducted by Saudi planes these days. The UAE Air Force, which was very active in the earlier phase of the campaign, is now only playing a limited role. The UAE forces on the ground are concentrating their firepower on the Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP) and the Daesh (Islamic State). The unjustified war unleashed on the hapless people of Yemen has the full support of the United States and key Western nations such as the United Kingdom and France.
The Barack Obama administration had given the Saudis the green light to attack Yemen to salve the bruised ego of the Saudi monarchy. The Saudis were deeply upset when it became clear that Washington was on the verge of inking the nuclear deal with Tehran. Iran has been certified as the main enemy of the Saudi monarchy. Israel too has identified Iran as the main threat to its existence. Top Saudi personalities have been openly meeting with Israeli officials. Prince Turki bin Faisal recently met with the former Israeli Defence Forces (IDF) chiefs.
This was followed by a visit to Israel by retired Gen. Anwar Eshki. Eshki is known to have close links with the Saudi military and intelligence apparatus. The Saudis have been alleging that Iran has been militarily propping up the Houthi-led coalition that was on the verge of consolidating its hold over the country. Tehran so far has only given diplomatic support to the Houthi-led government.
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How Not To Handle An Epidemic
The lockdowns were meant to buy time to put in place appropriate health measures and contain the coronavirus’ spread, but they have failed to achieve the objective and heaped immense misery on the marginalised sections of society. India is still in the exponential phase of the COVID-19 infection and community transmission is a reality that the government refuses to accept.
Tragedy on foot
As the COVID-19-induced lockdown cuts the ground beneath their feet in Tamil Nadu, thousands of migrant workers are trudging along the highway to the relative safety of their upcountry homes.
Sarpanchs as game changers
Odisha manages to keep COVID-19 well under control because of the strong participation of panchayati raj institutions and the community at the grass-roots level under the leadership of Chief Minister Naveen Patnaik.
Scapegoating China
As the COVID-19 death rate spikes and the economy tanks in the United States, Donald Trump and his advisers target China and the World Health Organisation with an eye to winning the forthcoming presidential election.
New worries
Kerala’s measured approach to the pandemic and lockdown has yielded results. But it still has to grapple with their huge economic impact on its economy, which it feels the Centre’s special financial relief package does little to alleviate.
No love lost for labour
Taking advantage of the lockdown and the inability of workers to organise protests, many State governments introduce sweeping changes to labour laws to the detriment of workers on the pretext of reviving production and boosting the economy.
Capital's Malthusian moment
In a world that needs substantial reorienting of production and distribution, Indian capital is resorting to a militant form of moribund neoliberalism to overcome its current crisis. In this pursuit of profit, it is ready and willing to throw into mortal peril millions whom it adjudicates as not worth their means—an admixture of social Darwinism born of capital’s avarice and brutalism spawned by Hindutva. .
Understanding migration
When governments and their plans are found to be blatantly wanting in addressing reverse migration, exercises such as the Ekta Parishad’s survey of migrant workers throughout India can be useful to work out creative long-lasting solutions.
Waiting for Jabalpur moment
The Supreme Court’s role in ensuring executive accountability during the ongoing lockdown leaves much to be desired. Standing in shining contrast is the record of some High Courts.
An empty package
The Modi regime, which has been unable to control the COVID-19 infection, restore economic activity and provide relief to millions exposed to starvation, trains its sights on Indian democracy, making use of the panic generated by fear and a lockdown that forecloses paths of resistance.
