Yemeni Political Parties and the Transition Process: From the Gulf Initiative to the Peace and Partnership Agreement, 2011–2014)

Abstract

  This study examines the positions of Yemeni political parties during the crisis from 2011 to 2014, beginning with the Gulf Initiative, moving through the National Dialogue Conference, and concluding with the Peace and Partnership Agreement. The research employs a descriptive-analytical approach to assess the role of parties in managing the transitional process and to identify challenges between theoretical consensus and practical divisions. The findings reveal that weak party performance, internal fragmentation, narrow interests, and regional interventions undermined the political settlement and facilitated the rise of the Houthis as a non-traditional armed force that reshaped the political landscape. The study concludes that the failure of political parties to safeguard the transitional process eroded the legitimacy of both the Gulf Initiative and the Dialogue outcomes, ultimately leading to the collapse of the Peace and Partnership Agreement. Resolving the Yemeni crisis requires rebuilding parties on democratic, national, and independent foundations.