The failure of the government to stem Houthi-led violence and the involvement of the external powers in Yemen’s sectarian problems has aggravated the country’s stability. Yemen has been turned in to a theater of conflict between Saudi Arabia and Iran.

Yemen has witnessed a number of al Qaeda-led activities in recent weeks. A suicide bomber killed four South Korean tourists in the city of Shibam in Hadramaut province on March 15, 2009. Three days later, al Qaeda attempted an attack on the convoy of the South Korean official delegation that was investigating these killings. These are the latest in a series of attacks on foreigners and foreign-run establishments in the country.