Destroying Yemen: What Chaos in Arabia Tells Us about the World

311 Pages·2018·2.66 MB·English

by  Isa Blumi

Destroying Yemen
what chaos in arabia tells us
about the world
Isa Blumi
university of california press
SIMPSON
IMPRINT IN HUMANITIES
The humanities endowment
by Sharon Hanly Simpson and
Barclay Simpson honors
MURIEL CARTER HANLEY
whose intellect and sensitivity
have enriched the many lives
that she has touched.
The publisher and the University of California Press
Foundation gratefully acknowledge the generous support of the
Simpson Imprint in Humanities.
Destroying Yemen
This page intentionally left blank
Destroying Yemen
what chaos in arabia tells us
about the world
Isa Blumi
university of california press
University of California Press, one of the most distinguished university
presses in the United States, enriches lives around the world by advancing
scholarship in the humanities, social sciences, and natural sciences. Its
activities are supported by the UC Press Foundation and by philanthropic
contributions from individuals and institutions. For more information,
visit www.ucpress.edu.
University of California Press
Oakland, California
© 2018 by Isa Blumi
Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data
Names: Blumi, Isa, 1969- author.
Title: Destroying Yemen : what chaos in Arabia tells us about the world /
Isa Blumi.
Description: Oakland, California : University of California Press, [2018] |
Includes bibliographical references and index. |
Identifi ers: LCCN 2017026563 (print) | LCCN 2017028124 (ebook) |
ISBN 9780520968783 (ebook) | ISBN 9780520296138 (cloth : alk. paper) |
ISBN 9780520296145 (pbk. : alk. paper)
Subjects: LCSH: Yemen (Republic)—Politics and government. | Yemen
(Republic)—Social conditions. | Yemen (Republic)—History—
20th century. | Yemen (Republic)—History—21st century. | Arab
countries—Politics and government—21st century. | National
security—Arab countries.
Classifi cation: LCC JQ1842.A58 (ebook) | LCC JQ1842.A58 B59 2018 (print)
| DDC 953.305/3—dc23
LC record available at https://lccn.loc.gov/2017026563
Manufactured in the United States of America
26 25 24 23 22 21 20 19 18 17
10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1
Për Jemenin më të dashur . . .
ﻚﻨﻣ ﺔﺒﻫﺭ ﻲﻓ ﺎﻧﺃ ... ﻦﻤﻳ ﺎﻳ
This page intentionally left blank
contents
List of Illustrations ix
Acknowledgments xi
Note on Dates, Abbreviations, and Transliteration xiii
Introduction 1
1 Th e Quest for Global Hegemony Starts Th ere 28
•
2 Th e Region Th at Pumps the Heart of the Cold War, 1941–1960 57
•
3 Birthing Revolution: A Genealogy of the 1962 Coup 85
•
4 Wrong from the Start: Modernization and Development
•
and the Violence Th ey Spun 113
5 Making Yemen Dance: Th e Regime and the
•
Politics of Chaos 142
6 Plundering Yemen and Its Post-Spring Hiatus 170
•
Coda: Yemen’s Relevance to the Larger World 201
Notes 213
Bibliography 265
Index 287