Features

WASHINGTON – Tech titan Microsoft –– which has struggled to keep pace with Sony and its PlayStation 4 –– is pinning its hopes on a new action video game, ironically named “Titanfall.”

The highly anticipated game for the new generation Xbox One console lands this week in a major global release, with Microsoft is betting it will keep the company in the forefront of the battle for the living room and home entertainment.

“The challenge is finding the ‘killer game,’” says Avi Greengart of research firm Current Analysis.

“Titanfall appears to be the first must-have, first-person mutliplayer game that takes real advantage of the Xbox One’s additional horsepower.”

Technology analyst Rob Enderle at Enderle Group said the new game — featuring elite assault pilots and heavily-armoured, 24-foot (six-metre) titans —  will be a critical test for Microsoft.

“Titanfall is really the big title for Xbox One,” he said. “Game consoles live and die on blockbusters, so it is really important that the audience likes this game.”

The game is produced by Respawn Entertainment, using designers of the “Call of Duty” blockbuster series, and distributed by Electronic Arts exclusively for Microsoft’s Xbox and PC platforms. It carries a US price tag of $60.

Set in the near future on a distant war-torn part of space called “the frontier”, Titanfall drops players in the middle of a conflict between the Interstellar Manufacturing Corporation and the Frontier Militia.

The main characters are the titans, described as “descendants of present-day fledgling military exoskeletons”, and the pilots, who have varying degrees of certification.

Players can shift back and forth between pilot and titan, change tactics on the fly and attack or escape depending on the situation, according to the producers.

The release comes with Microsoft’s Xbox One in intense battle with Sony and Nintendo’s Wii U to be at the heart of digital home entertainment and consoles under pressure to prove their worth as people increasingly turn to smartphones or tablets for games and videos.

Microsoft and Sony both had strong holiday sales after the release of their new-generation consoles last year. But so far in 2014 PS4 has been leading, according to the research firm NPD.

Greengart said Microsoft is trying to show Xbox One has momentum, and Titanfall may help.

“It’s not available on Sony, so this gives Microsoft a much-needed shot in the arm just as Sony has announced a nice spike in sales after PS4 went on sale in Japan,” Greengart told AFP.

Microsoft doesn’t want to be seen as left behind, he explained. “If consumers think one platform that has legs, sometimes it becomes so. Right now it looks like Sony has pulled ahead.”

Titanfall is being released Tuesday in the Americas, Russia and parts of Asia, and on Thursday in India, Japan, Australia, New Zealand and most of Europe. The release will be Friday in Britain, Ireland and Portugal.

Even with challenges facing the console games sector, there have been notable recent successes including “Grand Theft Auto V”, “Battlefield 4” “Just Dance 2014” and the latest installment of the “Call of Duty” franchise.

“Despite the growth of mobile games, a tremendous number of consumers are willing to spend serious money on the hardware and the gaming experience,” Greengart said.

“But is this the last generation of consoles? That’s the big question.”

Greengart said Microsoft and others have failed so far to bring gaming into the “ecosystem” that will encourage consumers to use the full range of products including phones and tablets.

“Neither Microsoft nor Sony nor Nintendo have done a good job of bridging the living room with their mobile assets,” he said.

AMMAN — For Lebanese artist Annie Kurkdjian, art is the best kind of therapy.

The Beirut-based artist, whose childhood has been scarred by the Lebanese civil war, says that creating artwork to channel her emotions makes her productive, and — as a result — happy.

“When I first started pursuing art within an academic domain between 1994 and 2004, I never felt happy,” Kurkdjian told The Jordan Times.

“Only when I decided to lock myself away from the opinions and comments of others did I find my own voice and my happiness in art,” she said.

At Wadi Finan Art Gallery, Kurkdjian’s distinctive style is on display, with intimate, probing works of acrylic and mixed media on canvas baring all the facades and barriers that individuals hide behind.

“To this day, I don’t ask people what they think of my work. I don’t care what others think as long as I’m satisfied with my art,” said the artist, who has majored at university in business and psychology.

Although her exaggerated style may at times be unflinchingly candid, Kurkdjian’s art maintains a playfulness that attracts and intrigues viewers.

“I don’t like straight-up tragedy; it drives people away. I don’t want to depress people. Having a whimsical element adds to the contrast and draws people into contemplating the artwork,” she said.

“There is a seductive element in contrast.”

In a painting of a man carrying a child on his shoulders in what appears to be a carefree moment, the predominant colour is a cold, distant blue, suggesting that the intimacy could be superficial.

Depictions of women dominate Kurkdjian’s art.

In one portrait, a woman’s unsmiling face is trapped in braids of her red hair, symbolising a cage. 

Another portrait shows a woman with her face almost entirely wrapped in white cloth — a kind of shroud.

“Her mouth is blocked, so she can’t say anything. Only her nose is not covered to fulfil the basic need to breathe. That’s how I see it,” Kurkdjian said, adding that she does not like to enforce a certain interpretation of her work.

“Others might see this as something completely different — a bride preparing for her wedding day maybe.”

The Lebanese artist is fascinated by the symbolism that can be associated with women’s hair.

“Hair is very symbolic. It is associated with femininity. If a woman cuts her hair very short, some view that as a way to revolt against men and patriarchy,” she said.

In one painting, a hand grasps a woman’s hair, as she stares resignedly into nothingness. With her hair being forced into a strict style, the woman is being symbolically controlled.

Another piece shows the back of a woman’s head, with her long hair tied into a severe bun instead of being left to flow freely, perhaps in a reflection of the restrictions confining her into a rigid role.

“I think of myself as a feminist. Women are oppressed everywhere, not just in Arab countries. But women’s victimisers are also victims of society,” the artist said.

“The relationships among women are also distorted,” she added, noting that they revel in each other’s misfortunes instead of offering support.

Kurkdjian also employs nudity in her paintings, seeing it as a reflection of people’s most intimate, unguarded moments.

“When people are naked, they shed all the masks that they hide behind. They are only naked when they are alone,” she said, dismissing claims that showing nudity in art makes it immoral.

“To me, superficial or imitative art is what truly is immoral.”

The exhibition continues through March 19.

SYDNEY – The steam and heat from volcanoes allowed species of plants and animals to survive past ice ages, a study showed Tuesday, offering help for scientists dealing with climate change.

An international team of researchers said their analysis helped explain a long-running mystery about how some species thrived in areas covered by glaciers, with volcanoes acting as an oasis of life during long cold periods.

“Volcanic steam can melt large ice caves under the glaciers, and it can be tens of degrees warmer in there than outside,” said Ceridwen Fraser, the joint team leader from the Australian National University.

“Caves and warm steam fields would have been great places for species to hang out during ice ages.

“We can learn a lot from looking at the impacts of past climate change as we try to deal with the accelerated change that humans are now causing.”

The team studied tens of thousands of records of Antarctic mosses, lichens and bugs, collected over decades by hundreds of researchers, and found there were more species close to volcanoes, and fewer further away.

While the study was based on Antarctica, the findings will also help scientists understand how species survived past ice ages in other frigid regions, including in periods when it is thought there was little or no ice-free land on the planet.

Antarctica has at least 16 volcanoes which have been active since the last ice age 20,000 years ago with around 60 per cent of Antarctic invertebrate species found nowhere else in the world.

“The closer you get to volcanoes, the more species you find,” said Aleks Terauds from the Australian Antarctic Division, which ran the analysis that was published by the US-based journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

“This pattern supports our hypothesis that species have been expanding their ranges and gradually moving out from volcanic areas since the last ice age.”

Another team member, Steven Chown, from Monash University in Melbourne, said the research findings could help guide conservation efforts in Antarctica.

“Knowing where the ‘hotspots’ of diversity are will help us to protect them as human-induced environmental changes continue to affect Antarctica,” he said.

STOCKHOLM – A natural compound hidden away in spinach has been shown to reduce food cravings between meals and could help prevent obesity, a Swedish scientist said on Monday.

Charlotte Erlanson-Albertsson, a professor of appetite regulation at Lund University, found the compound, known as thylakoid, while looking for ways to slow digestion and alleviate hunger pangs.

The compound functions differently to processed foods, which tend to be digested only in the upper intestine.

This prevents key hormones that make us feel full from being released to the brain, according to a statement from the university.

“I like to say our intestines are unemployed,” Erlanson-Albertsson said.

A test group of 15 people who took the compound every morning reported that it had become easier to resist the temptation to eat between meals. 

Erlanson-Albertsson discovered the compound after speaking to her husband, a scientist researching photosynthesis.

He steered her in the direction of thylakoids, a compound in green leaves believed to slow down fat digestion, meaning the whole intestine has time to get involved, the university said.

But eating spinach itself is not enough. It has to be crushed, filtrated and passed through a centrifuge, freeing the thylakoids from the plant’s cells. 

“Our bodies can’t break it down from fresh spinach directly,” the university said. 

First launched in 2008 as Mercedes’ first gambit into then up and coming compact car-like SUV niche, the GLK Class put emphasis on a combination of practicality, on-road composure and modest but genuine off-road ability. The GLK Class may have lived somewhat in the shadow of the Mercedes’ larger and more established ML Class and it may not be as fashionably swept back and futuristic as the just released and smaller still GLA Class, but from this writer’s perspective, the GLK’s versatile and sensible appeal seems to have only grown, especially so after its 2012 midlife facelift and in GLK350 4Matic guise as recently driven.

Utilitarian design

Based on the outgoing Mercedes C Class saloon’s underpinnings and styled to look like a miniaturised version of Mercedes’ larger G Class and CL Class SUVs, the GLK Class’ upright body style is utilitarian if not trendy, while its long front end, wide stance and relatively low posture reflected its car-like on-road refinement and front-engine rear-drive based four-wheel-drive architecture. In fact, the GLK’s relatively low waistline and tall glasshouse may be contrary to prevailing fashion, but is one of its most practical features, in that it allows for excellent driving visibility to accurately place the car on road, and generous passenger headroom and cargo capacity.

Revised in 2012, the GLK’s design hasn’t radically changed, but includes reworked light clusters with a sharper front design including LED elements. Bumpers are also redesigned, and are more sculpted and include lines and elements — like running light strips and wider but slimmer dual tailpipes — to emphasise width. Sportier and more stylised look, the face-lifted GLK Class adds skid plate-style metallic panels curling up the centre of the bumpers for a tougher off-roading appearance. Bonnet and flank sheet metal are unchanged, with prominent ridges and creases, but the small side running boards have however been delete for more integrated and car-like sills.

Space and visibility

Freshened up inside and out, the revised GLK Class receives a sportier and more up-market interior including more colour choices, ambient lighting, a long single piece wood or aluminium dashboard panel, redesigned seats, sporty round crosshair vents and a more elegant and contoured sports steering wheel, while the gear lever is repositioned onto the steering column for better ergonomics and enhanced storage space. Also new are coned and chrome-tipped instrument gauges and an enhanced infotainment system and screen, with USB and Bluetooth connectivity, 14.7cm TFT display, and optional voice command, rear iPad docking, digital TV reception and Harmon Kardon sound system.

Spacious and comfortable inside, the GLK’s well-adjustable seats and steering provide a good driving position and posture, while its big glasshouse allows terrific visibility for more confident driving, and creates and airy ambiance. The tall roofline and low seating position also provide excellent headroom, with rear occupants getting a generous, 1,012mm. A practical car with 575kg payload capacity, the GLK350 accommodates between 450- to 1,550-litres of cargo volume, depending on seat configuration. Optional equipment includes a parallel parking assistance system which can steer the GLK into spots and a 360° front camera for enhanced safety and maneuverability in confined conditions.

Brisk and agile

Improved under-hood too, the range-topping GLK350 4Matic gets a 34BHP hike owing to the introduction of direct fuel injection, which brings its 3.5-litre V6 engine’s output to 302BHP at 6,500rpm, while a 15lb/ft. torque hike yields 273lb/ft. throughout 3,500-5,250rpm. With the new motor the GLK 350 has its cake and eats it, as the performance increase is complemented by improved combined cycle fuel efficiency of 8.1-8.6l/100km. It may be restrained by SUV standards, but at 1,845kg the GLK350 isn’t exactly a lightweight, yet it moves with a brisk agility, sprinting to 100km/h in hot hatch-like 6.5-seconds and onto 238km/h.

Driving all four wheels with a 55 per cent rear power distribution bias, the GLK350 handles similar to a rear-driver through corners, but tenaciously digs all four paws into the tarmac when launching off the line or through hard corners to claw back traction and grip, if pushed too hard. Complementing the engine’s smooth delivery and generously flexible mid-range torque band, the GLK350’s seven-speed automatic gearbox allows one to best exploit available output for efficiency, performance or on the move versatility. Bringing the GLK350 to curt stop are ventilated all-round disc brakes with ABS, which prime for in anticipation of emergency stops.

Maneuverable on- and off-road

Smooth, maneuverable, agile and eager, the GLK350 4Matic is a more engaging, nippy and versatile on-road performer than its larger, taller and heavier SUV siblings. Though it leans more and grips better, the GLK350’s handling is similar to the C Class saloon, with sharp and tidy turn-in and balanced chassis. Steering is quick, well-weighted and precise. Agile through corners, the GLK350 controls weight transfers well through switchbacks and grips well when exiting. Riding on well-chosen tyres and with adaptive damping the GLK350 is supple over lumps and bumps and reassuringly planted at speed, and features numerous driver-assistance systems including adaptive cruise control.

A better off-road performer than expected, the GLK keeps up with Mercedes’ larger SUVs over sand, rocks, gravel and uneven terrain much further than anticipated. Short wheelbase, good ground clearance and short overhangs allow it 23° approach, 19° ramp and 25° departure angles for moving over uneven terrain and quite deep ruts, while its light weight and compact size means it isn’t grounded easily and is maneuverable along narrow trails. An optional off-road engineering package adds an automatic hill descent, under-guards, raised suspension and an off-road switch that re-calibrates shift points, throttle responsiveness, ABS, stability controls and four-wheel-drive for off-road driving. 

SPECIFICATIONS

Engine: 3.5-litre, 24-valve, direct injection, in-line V6-cylinders

Bore x stroke: 92.9 x 86mm

Compression ratio: 12:1

Gearbox: 7-speed automatic, permanent four-wheel-drive

Ratios: 1st 4.38; 2nd 2.86; 3rd 1.92; 4th 1.37; 5th 1:1; 6th 0.82; 7th 0.73; R1 3.42; R2 2.23

Final drive: 3.27

Torque distribution F/R: 45% / 55%

0-100 km/h: 6.5-seconds

Maximum speed: 238km/h

Power, BHP (PS) [kW]: 302 (306) [225] @ 6,500rpm

Torque, lb/ft (Nm): 273 (370) @ 3,500-5,250rpm

Fuel consumption, combined: 8.1-8.6-litres/100 km

CO2 emissions, combined: 189-199g/km

Fuel capacity: 66 +8-litres reserve

Length: 4,536mm

Width: 1,840mm

Height: 1,669mm

Wheelbase: 2,755mm

Track, F/R: 1,574 / 1,597mm

Overhang, F/R: 824 / 957mm

Aerodynamic drag co-efficiency: 0.36

Ground clearance: 201mm

Approach / departure angles: 23° / 25°

Breakover angle: 19°

Maximum tilt angle: 35°

Maximum climbing gradient: 70%

Fording depth: 300mm

Steering: Speed-sensitiv hydraulic rack and pinion

Turning circle: 11.65-metres

Headroom, F/R: 1,010 / 1,012mm

Shoulder room, F/R: 1,401 / 1,408mm

Boot capacity, min / max: 450- / 1,550-litres

Payload capacity: 575kg

Kerb weight: 1,845kg

Trailer load, unbraked: 750kg

Suspension, F/R: Multi-link, coil springs, twin- / single-tube gas-charged dampers Brakes: Ventilated discs

Tyres: 235/60R17

PARIS – Researchers in the US say they have developed a prototype blood test that can tell with 90-per cent accuracy whether a healthy person will develop Alzheimer’s disease within three years.

The test looks for 10 signatures of fatty proteins called lipids, according to a study published on Sunday in the journal Nature Medicine.

It could help families of people developing the cognitive disorder make early decisions on how best to care for them and may also aid the search for treatment, the authors said.

Several years of clinical trials are likely to be needed to assess the prototype technique, the first blood “biomarker” to predict the tragic degenerative disease.

Alzheimer’s, caused by toxic proteins that destroy brain cells, is a currently incurable and fatal degenerative disease.

Around 35 million people have the disease, a tally that is expected to reach 115 million people by 2050, according to the World Health Organisation.

“Our novel blood test offers the potential to identify people at risk for progressive cognitive decline and can change how patients, their families and treating physicians plan for and manage the disorder,” said Howard Federoff, a professor of neurology at Georgetown University Medical Centre in Washington.

It could also help efforts to treat the disease, he said in a press release.

Attempts to develop drugs for Alzheimer’s have failed possibly because they are tested when the disease has progressed too far, Federoff said.

These treatments may have a better chance of braking or reversing the disease if they are trialled at a much earlier stage, he said.

The researchers started by taking blood samples from 525 healthy volunteers aged 70 and older.

Three years later, they looked at a group of 53 volunteers who had developed symptoms of early Alzheimer’s or a memory-affecting condition known as amnestic mild cognitive impairment (aMCI).

The blood samples from this group were compared against the samples from 53 otherwise healthy volunteers to see what the difference was.

From this, the scientists spotted the 10 telltale lipid proteins, which appear to be metabolised residues of brain cell membranes.

WASHINGTON – News organisations get the most engaged readers by working on their own to build brand loyalty, not through referrals from social media or search engines, a study showed Monday.

The Pew Research Centre found that “direct visitors” who use the news outlet’s specific address or have it bookmarked stay about three times as long as those who come from a search engine or Facebook.

“Facebook and search are critical for bringing added views to individual stories, but, the data suggest it is hard to build relationships with those users,” said Amy Mitchell, Pew’s director of journalism research.

“For news outlets operating under the traditional model and hoping to build a loyal, paying audience, it is critical for users to think of that outlet as the first place they should turn.”

The study underscores the challenges of news organisations trying to make a transition from print to digital –– and keep revenues flowing.

It also suggests limits to the idea of “social news” helping traditional media organisations.

The study, in collaboration with the Knight Foundation, found a higher level of engagement from direct visitors across the full mix of sites studied.

Even sites such as Buzzfeed and NPR, which have an unusually high level of Facebook traffic, saw greater engagement from those who sought them out directly, the researchers said.

The study found it is difficult for news outlets to convert a “social” referral to a permanent direct visitor.

Of the sites examined, the percentage of direct visitors who also came to the site via Facebook was extremely small, ranging from 0.9 to 2.3 per cent, with the exception of Buzzfeed at 11.3 per cent.

Similarly, the percentage of direct visitors who came to a site through a search engine ranged from 1.3 per cent to 4.1 per cent, with one notable exception — examiner.com at 8.6 per cent.

The researchers studied traffic using comScore data from April to June 2013 at 26 major news sites including CNN, BBC, The New York Times, Huffington Post and others.

Most people accessed the news on their computers using three methods — direct access, search or social media. But a small percentage came from other sources including e-mail, message boards and other websites.

For mobile news, Pew found the browser was used more than a dedicated mobile app, although it noted that only half of the news sites studied had such an app.

NOVI SAD, Serbia – It is the peak of the Cold War, a secret agent has launched nuclear weapons and a small team of sleuths has one hour to prevent the end of the world.

The team has a single clue: a coded message left in a typewriter by a secret agent.

With 60 minutes ticking down on the large electronic wall clock, they must unravel dozens of codes, clues and leads to discover the keys that can stop the blast.

“Escape Room” –– the real-life adaptation of a classic 1980s video game –– is a new craze popping up around the world.

Having already made its mark in London, Paris and Bangkok, games are being organised in some unlikely spots around central Europe, including the picturesque Danube city of Novi Sad in Serbia where it has reached the number three spot for “things to do” on travel website Trip Advisor.

“This is a complex game that requires ability, intelligence, education and team work, much more than the online version,” said Boban Melkus, a 36-year-old high school teacher who set up the game in Novi Sad.

Melkus and his wife Nina began offering the game in December in a rented apartment. Teams pay 4,000 dinars (35 euros, $45) to play in one of two rooms that have been given a Cold War makeover.

There are old-fashioned telephones that act as “hotlines” to Berlin, Madrid, Athens; a decades-old typewriter, and walls plastered with military maps and photos of Cold War-era leaders.

The business was profitable from the very first day, even though they only put a small ad on their Facebook page, said Melkus.

“We have two rooms: players can save the world from a nuclear catastrophe or rob a bank,” Melkus explains.

He says players can get their money back if they are not satisfied, but “so far, nobody has asked for it.

“We even had a team from a computer games company, but it was difficult for them and they only just saved the world,” joked Nina.

It attracts all ages –– from 15 to 60 –– but fans of the former computer game in their 30s and 40s are the most common, she added.

Zorica Ljubicic, a 53-year old clerk who had no experience with the virtual version, came out beaming with satisfaction after she and two friends averted the apocalypse.

“This was such good fun –– everything was so exciting, we saved the world!”

Her friend Zarko said their team skills were key to their success.

“Next we will rob a bank,” she said.

The game was first transferred from the virtual to the real world in Asia, appearing in Bangkok under a variety of names including ClueQuest and HintHunt.

The Melkus couple first played it in Budapest in Hungary, where it has seriously caught on, with over 40 companies organising the game in more than 100 rooms around the city.

The couple plans to take the game next to the Serbian capital Belgrade, as well as Geneva and Zurich in Switzerland.

It’s become a popular team-building event for businesses –– in contrast to the original version of the game which was a purely solo affair.

“Here, you are nothing without a team,” Nina said.

Building on this part of the business, the Meldeks have even engaged the services of a psychologist to make a profile of each player based on their response to the puzzle.

NEW YORK — Samsung on Friday unveiled a new free music service for its phones that it touts as a significant improvement from the apps already on the market.

The South Korean gadget maker’s Milk Music service, which launched in the US on Friday, includes over 200 stations and 13 million songs. It’s designed to be extremely fast, easy to use and highly customisable.

But the new service enters an already crowded space. There are numerous streaming music services, including Pandora, Spotify and Apple Inc.’s iTunes Radio.

“We feel that while the music space is very competitive there is room for improvement,” said Daren Tsui, vice president of music at Samsung Media Solutions.

Samsung’s app features a large wheel reminiscent of an old-fashioned radio tuner. Users can spin through various genres of music to find something they like. Favourite stations can be added to a “My Stations” section, while individual songs can be tagged as favourites or put on a list never to be played.

Milk is powered by Slacker, which operates its own streaming music service. But unlike Slacker, Milk is ad-free at no cost. While Slacker does offer a basic service for free, it charges users $4 a month to remove advertising.

US users can now download the Milk app from Google Play. It works on most of Samsung’s Galaxy line of phones, but isn’t compatible with devices made by other companies.

Why Yemen Matters: A Society in Transition

Edited by Helen Lackner

London: Saqi Books, 2014, 334 pp

“Why Yemen Matters” is a remarkable book in terms of its comprehensiveness, accessibility and ethical approach. Comprising articles by 18 scholars, many of whom have spent extensive time in the country, it covers Yemen’s politics and economy from the early 20^th century to the 2011 uprising and its aftermath, with social issues woven into the overall analysis. Located at the crossroads of two continents and strategic waterways, Yemen’s geopolitical importance is highlighted, as are the regional and international factors that impact on its internal situation. 

For a small country, Yemen has a relatively large and diverse population. Its politics are complicated by a range of factors, not least its former division and subsequent unification, and its status as the poorest among oil-rich neighbours, but the contributors navigate these complexities with clearly explained facts. There is sufficient coverage of the past to make the current situation understandable without an overload of historical data. An excellent chronology is provided for those not well versed in Yemeni history, as well as several good maps. The articles are impeccably objective, yet one senses that the authors write out of concern for the Yemeni people’s welfare, not only as academic.

 Editor Helen Lackner begins with an overview that, inter alia, traces the roots and special characteristics of the 2011 uprising, and evaluates its outcome, noting, “The peaceful political movement in Yemen was more widespread and long-lasting than anywhere else in the region.” (p. 12) In a tone that can only be described as feisty, Sheila Carapico critiques US “anti-terrorist” attacks on Yemen as “patently contrary to the pursuit of justice, respect for human rights and cultivation of the rule of law” for which Yemenis activists were struggling by peaceful means, despite regime violence. (p. 44) Laurent Bonnefoy gives a fascinating account of the various forces involved in the uprising at different times and places, especially the “shabab” or youths –– very representative as youths account for almost 75 per cent of the population, and the Islamists. Moving to the cultural field, Katherine Hennessey stresses the role of artists, musicians and actors in the 2011 demonstrations, asserting that prior to that, “one of the places that sociopolitical discontent was being most powerfully expressed was on the Yemeni stage” (p. 70). Her review of the topics of contemporary Yemeni plays is eye-opening.

By analysing civil-military relations, Adam C. Seitz explains why the army fractured in 2011, as the regime’s participation in the “war on terror” and divide-and-rule policies backfired, alienating large segments of its political and tribal support base. In a similar vein, Marieke Brandt makes sense of the recurring wars in the Sa’ada area, clarifying the motives of the Huthi revolt after the regime recurrently used tribal militias from the North to fight its battles. In her view, “it was not tribal involvement per se, but rather an erosion of tribal norms that contributed to the brutalisation of the conflict.” (p. 107) Noel Brehony addresses the legacy of the People’s Democratic Republic and how it relates to today’s independence movement in the South.

Successive articles address employment, which is especially acute among southern youth; water scarcity which has reached crisis proportions; land-related disputes –– the most common cause of armed violence; limitations on economic development; and the woefully inadequate healthcare system. Gerhard Lichtenthaler provides a ray of hope by telling how people in some areas have applied tribal customs to enact “local solutions and community self-regulation in dealing with water stress”. (p. 183) Addressing women’s reproductive health, Christian Hellmich contends that contraception is not the solution if not coupled with augmenting women’s social status and decision-making power. This entails revision of laws and state policy since, after unification, “In the bargaining process that has dominated the political sphere since 1994, women’s rights have become the first casualty of politics in a fragile state.” (p. 262) 

Two chapters on migration round out the book. The first covers Yemeni migration historically from traders of old, who reached and settled in Indonesia, to more recent labour migrants to Gulf states — and the impact of their return. Less well-known is that Yemen is a migrant receiver state, offering asylum to Somalis fleeing war and chaos, and job opportunities to Ethiopians. The second article covers the Yemeni community in China, seen as facilitators for Yemenis doing business with China — all in the context of substantial Chinese development aid to Yemen over decades. 

 This book is a must-read for those wanting to go beyond the headlines proclaiming Yemen a “failed state”, in order to learn about people’s daily realities, needs and aspirations. It dispels misconceptions about the causes of Yemen’s problems, such as exaggerating the role of qat, tribalism, Islam or Al Qaeda, to reveal Yemenis as wrestling with problems often beyond their control, but who persist in struggling for a better future. 

Sally Bland