Assessment of the legality of the Saudi-led intervention in Yemen

Abstract

A coalition of primarily Arab states commenced airstrikes in Yemen at the behest of its interim government leader, Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi on March 25, 2015. Codenamed Operation Decisive Storm, this military operation garnered little to no international uproar, despite taking place in an active civil war. Merely noted by the United Nations Security Council, the operation was primarily justified on the basis of self-defense. However, legal assessment reveals that the justification is misapplied and unwarranted. Moreover, the invitation under closer examination proves to be a hasten attempt to remedy deeply rooted domestic problems with instruments of international law disregarding the already plummeting and hence questionable legitimacy of Yemen’s ruler.