But Yemen, the poorest country in the region, has global importance. It is one of the world’s biggest exporters of terrorism.
Yemen is home to al Qaeda in the Arab Peninsula, or AQAP, which most recently claimed responsibility for the massacre of journalists at the French satirical magazine Charlie Hebdo in Paris.
AQAP is benefiting hugely from the current conflict in Yemen. Here are seven things you need to know about this small nation.
Where is Yemen?
Yemen is a country of about 26 million people on the southwestern tip of the Arabian Peninsula, sharing a border with Saudi Arabia and Oman. It’s strategically located on important shipping lanes of the Red Sea.
Yemen is a young nation, having been created in 1990 when North and South Yemen united. The north and south started a civil war within a few years, with the south prevailing after thousands died.
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Some presidential officials are worried about actions by republican guards, former regime officials who are still loyal to Ali Abdullah Saleh, the ex-president who was kicked out in 2012 during the Arab Spring.
What does Yemen’s conflict mean for AQAP?
Chaos is good for terrorists.
The weaker the government, the easier it will be for al Qaeda to bring in people and train them for terrorism. The chaos hampers Western efforts to hunt down al Qaeda, and hampers Western efforts to even be in the country.
CNN’s Raja Razek contributed to this report.
