The complex conflict known as the Yemen war did not emerge from a single moment but rather from a deep accumulation of historical grievances, political fractures, and regional power struggles. To understand what started the Yemen war, one must look beyond the immediate military actions of 2014 and examine the fragile state building efforts following the Arab Spring, the collapse of the transition government, and the strategic calculations of Iran and Saudi Arabia. The situation in Yemen represented a critical failure of political reconciliation and created a vacuum that external powers were all too willing to exploit for their own security interests.
The Fragile Transition and Political Collapse
For many observers, the starting point of the open conflict was the rapid deterioration of the political transition following the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh in 2012. The Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) initiative had established a framework for a power transfer that was supposed to unite the country under a new leadership structure. However, the subsequent National Dialogue Conference became a stage for escalating tensions rather than a forum for unity. The Houthi movement, which had long felt marginalized by the central government, rejected the outcomes of the dialogue, claiming the process excluded their northern constituency and failed to address systemic corruption and governance deficits.
The Houthi Advance and the Fall of Sana'a
By late 2014, the Houthi insurgency had shifted from a localized rebellion to a full-scale military campaign that shocked the international community. Utilizing sophisticated smuggling networks and captured military equipment, Houthi fighters swept south from their stronghold in Saada, seizing control of the capital, Sana'a, in September 2014. This event marked the true ignition of the conflict. The Houthis did not merely occupy the capital; they dissolved parliament and established a Revolutionary Committee to govern, effectively declaring that the existing political order was illegitimate. This move directly threatened the interests of President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, who fled to Aden in February 2015 and sought to re-establish a rival government.
The Regionalization of the Conflict
The conflict escalated from a civil dispute into a regional proxy war almost immediately after Hadi’s flight. The Houthis, who adhere to Zaidi Shiite Islam, began to receive substantial logistical and intelligence support from Iran. Saudi Arabia and other Gulf monarchies viewed this external backing as an intolerable security threat, fearing the establishment of a hostile client state on their southern border. Consequently, what started the Yemen war in its current multinational form was the decision by Saudi Arabia to launch a massive airstrike campaign in March 2015, codenamed Operation Decisive Storm, aimed at restoring Hadi’s government and pushing Houthi forces back north.
The Coalition Intervention and Ground Invasion
While the aerial campaign provided immediate security for Aden, the coalition soon realized that defeating the Houthis required a ground presence. The United Arab Emirates led a southern invasion to retake Aden, while Saudi forces struggled to make significant headway in the northern highlands. This phase of the war solidified the conflict’s devastating humanitarian impact. The coalition’s blockade of Houthi-held territories, intended to cut off Iranian supply lines, inadvertently restricted the flow of food, medicine, and fuel. The result was the creation of what the United Nations has described as the world’s worst humanitarian crisis, with millions facing famine and disease.
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