Guests: Hamzeh Hadad and Alexandra Dufour, Graduate students at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs
About: Referred to as the world’s largest humanitarian crisis, Yemen is steeped in a conflict stemming from the 2011 Yemeni revolution, part of the broader Arab spring protests. Seven years into this latest conflict sees no signs of slowing down as Saudi Arabia and Iran provide support to opposing factions as part of their larger proxy war to gain influence in the Middle East. A recent humanitarian aid blockade exacerbates famine and cholera spreading across the population. How did it get to this point? What should international actors do to find a solution to this conflict? Join Hamzeh, Alex and Mitch as they discuss the history of Yemen and the events leading up to the current crisis.
Hamzeh is a Master of Arts candidate at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs. He holds a Bachelor of Arts with honours in both Political Science and History of Science & Technology from the University of King’s College. Field experience includes NGO work in Iraq in 2014 and at the Iraqi Embassy in Washington, D.C. in 2015. Hamzeh’s written work can be found at Al-Jazeera English, Small Wars Journal and 1001 Iraqi Thoughts.
Alexandra Dufour is a first year MA Candidate at the Norman Paterson School of International Affairs. She specializes in Middle-Eastern history and politics and seeks to deepen her knowledge of the Gulf region throughout her master degree. Her knowledge on Yemen was recently recognized as the Conference of Defence Association ON TRACK magazine published her analysis on the crisis in 2017.
Attributions:
Music: www.incompetech.com
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