SANAA, Yemen — In 2011, anti-government protesters celebrated when Yemen saw a leader’s three decades of rule come to an end after almost a year of mass demonstrations. For many, former President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s downfall symbolized the emergence of a new era in this Arab nation. But average citizens paid the price for months of political and security instability.
The nation’s already feeble economy was in shambles, with no indication that Yemen’s coming internationally engineered political transition would bring monetary relief to a nation where unemployment rates are inching towards 50%, some analysts say.