| A number of Red Sea islands,
including the Hanish Islands, Kamaran and Perim, as well as Socotra in the Arabian Sea
belong to Yemen. Many of the islands are volcanic, for example Jabal al-Tair had a
volcanic eruption in 2007 and before that in 1883. |
Yemen is one of the oldest
centers of civilization in the world. Between the ninth century BC and the sixth century
AD, it was part of the Sabaean, Awsanian, Minaean, Qatabanian, Hadhramawtian, Himyarite,
and some other kingdoms, which controlled the lucrative spice trade. It was known to the
Ancient Romans as Arabia Felix ("Happy Arabia") because of the riches its trade
generated. Augustus Caesar attempted to annex it, but the expedition failed. The Ethiopian
Kingdom of Aksum annexed it by around 520, and it was subsequently taken by the Sassanids
Persians around 570. |
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Cities |
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- Sana'a (2,431,649)
- Taizz (596,672)
- Al Hudaydah (548,433)
- Aden (507,355)
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- Ibb (225,611)
- Dhamar (160,114)
- Al-Mukalla (144,137)
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Domes of the Ameriyah Mosque in Rada
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Yemeni man wearing headscarf
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| Demographics |
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- Population: 21,456,188
- Life Expectancy: 62.12 years
- Literacy: 50.2%
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- Median Age: 16.6 years
- Suffrage: 18 years - universal
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Yemeni woman wearing headscarf
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President Ali Abdallah Salih came to power
in 1978 after the mysterious assassinations of two predecessors, and recently won over 96
percent of the vote in the first national referendum to elect a president. |
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| Geographics |
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- Land Size: slightly larger than twice the size of Wyoming
- Total: 527,970 sq km
- Water: 0 sq km
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| History |
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- Founding of Yemeni Republic (1962)
- British withdraw Port of Aden, establishing South Yemen (1967)
- Al-Hamidi Took Power In A Coup (June 13, 1974)
- Yemen and South Yemen re-united (1990)
- Yemen was neutral in Gulf War (1990)
- US Embassy bombed, reportedly linked to President Ali Abdullah Salleh,
September 23, 1992
- Series of assassinations, 30 members of Socialist Party killed over year
led to mass resignations, just before elections, reportedly linked to President Ali
Abdullah Salleh (September 1992)
- Civil War in Yemen (1994)
- IMF introduces floating exchange rates to currency (1995)
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