The New Pattern of State Disintegration in Yemen: From the Legitimate Government to Tribal-Military Networks, 2020–2024

Volume 9, Issue 3 - Serial Number 34
Autumn 2025
Pages 173-201

Document Type : Original Independent Original Article

Authors

1 PhD student in International Relations, Islamic Azadi University, Isfahan Branch, Khorasgan, Isfahan, Iran

2 Assistant Professor, Department of Islamic Studies, Isfahan (Khorasgan) Branch, Islamic Azad University, Isfahan, Iran

Abstract
The developments in Yemen between 2020 and 2024 reflect a transition from a legal state to a network-tribal structure; a model in which the concept of classical state has given way to a combination of local, paramilitary, and religious powersthis. The aim is to examine the mechanisms that caused the central government of Yemen to transform into a network structure of local and military power. The question is how the process of power transformation in Yemen changed from a state-centered model to a local network system, and what is connection between institutional weakness, regional rivalries, and elite action mechanisms in this change? The hypothesis is that the State Disintegration in Yemen is not simply the result of institutional collapse, but rather the result of gradual formation of tactical links between local forces and regional actors who, in a process of proxy competition, transformed national sovereignty into networked power structures. The study, using process tracking, finds that three factors accelerate this transition: declining government capacity to manage resources and security, integration of militia forces into local power structures, and intensifying proxy competition among Iran, Saudi Arabia, and UAE in Yemen. Yemen shows fragile states evolving into interconnected, networked regional power systems.

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