CONFLICTED

The Battle for Yemen Begins Again

CONFLICTED

Show Notes

Yemeni researcher and political analyst Baraa Shiban (and dear friend of the show) is back not only to give us an update on Yemen now that the civil war (and Saudi Arabia’s role in it) are heating up again, but also to give Thomas a much-deserved dressing down for not going far enough to hold Jeremy Hunt to account for his role in the Stockholm Agreement.

Baraa explains:

The collapse of the 2022 Yemen truce and renewed Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia and Red Sea shipping

The Yemen battlefield map: Houthi control of Sanaa, Hodeidah and the northwest versus government-held south and east

The strategic importance of Marib and Hadramaut, including Saudi-trained National Shield and Emergency Forces

Mocha, the Giants Brigades and the impact of the UAE withdrawal on anti-Houthi military capabilities

The Stockholm Agreement and how the 2018 ceasefire strengthened long-term Houthi leverage

Why the Houthis are escalating now and how renewed fighting serves Iran’s regional strategy

Houthi links with the IRGC, Hezbollah and Iraqi militias, including operations and financial networks in Iraq

Saudi war aims, the Mecca Accords and the emerging Saudi–Turkey–Pakistan security architecture

Follow Baraa on Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/baraashiban/⁠

Follow Baraa on X: ⁠https://x.com/BShtwtr⁠

Join the Conflicted Community here: ⁠https://conflicted.supportingcast.fm⁠

Find us on X: ⁠https://x.com/MHconflicted⁠

And Facebook: ⁠https://www.facebook.com/MHconflicted⁠

And Instagram: ⁠https://www.instagram.com/conflictedpod⁠

Learn more about your ad choices. Visit ⁠megaphone.fm/adchoices⁠

Conflicted is a Message Heard production.

Executive Producers: Jake Warren & Max Warren.

This episode was produced and edited by Thomas Small . Learn more about your ad choices. Visit podcastchoices.com/adchoices

More from CONFLICTED

Oct 15, 2026

We welcome back friend of the show Baraa Shiban, who was recently on the front lines in Yemen. The Houthis have surrounded Taiz once again. Can the city that has defied Yemen's tyrants for generations hold out against another devastating siege?

Oct 13, 2026

In this latest Conflicted Conversation, Ruben Andersson, professor of social anthropology at Oxford University's Department of International Development, discusses his new book Age of Security: The Rise of a Global Obsession.

Oct 8, 2026

In this latest Conflicted Conversation, journalist Adrian Wooldridge discusses his latest book Centrists of the World Unite: The Lost Genius of Liberalism.

Oct 6, 2026

Sudan’s civil war has become a regional proxy struggle, with the UAE, Egypt, Iran, Turkey and other powers backing rival armed camps as the country fragments under the pressure of war. But while the RSF’s foreign support has drawn intense scrutiny, the forces sustaining Sudan’s army — from Islamist networks to drones, money and weapons supplied from abroad — have received far less attention.

Oct 2, 2026

The war is widening, diplomacy has stalled, and the Middle East is once again sliding towards escalation as the relationship between Israel and the Gulf states grows closer while pressure on Iran is mounting at sea, in the air, and across its network of regional allies.

See all episodes →