North Yemen-South Yemen Border Conflict of 1972

Background
Following the collapse of the Ottoman Empire in 1918 after the Great War, northern Yemen became an independent state as the Mutawakkilite Kingdom of Yemen. On 27 September 1962, revolutionaries inspired by the Arab nationalist ideology of United Arab Republic (Egyptian) President Gamal Abdel Nasser deposed the newly crowned King Muhammad al-Badr, took control of Sana'a, and established the Yemen Arab Republic (YAR). This coup d'état marked the beginning of the North Yemen Civil War that pitted YAR troops, assisted by the United Arab Republic (Egypt), against Badr's royalist forces, supported by Saudi Arabia and Jordan. Conflict continued periodically until 1967, when Egyptian troops were withdrawn to join the conflict of the Six-Day War. By 1968, following a final royalist siege of Sana'a, most of the opposing leaders reached a reconciliation. Saudi Arabia recognized the Republic in 1970.

In 1963, Aden and much of the Protectorate were joined to form the Federation of South Arabia with the remaining states that declined to join, mainly in Hadhramaut, forming the separate Protectorate of South Arabia. Both of these polities were still tied to Britain with promises of total independence in 1968. Two nationalist groups, the Front for the Liberation of Occupied South Yemen (FLOSY) and the National Liberation Front (NLF), began an armed struggle (Aden Emergency) on 14 October 1963 against British control and, with the temporary closure of the Suez Canal in 1967, the British began to withdraw. One faction, NLF, was invited to the Geneva Talks to sign the independence agreement with the British. Ironically, Britain, who during its occupation of Aden signed several treaties of protection with the local sheikhdoms and emirates of the Federation of South Arabia, excluded them in the talks and thus the agreement stated "...the handover of the territory of South Arabia to the (Yemeni) NLF...". Southern Yemen became independent as the People's Republic of Southern Yemen on 30 November 1967, and the National Liberation Front consolidated its control in the country.

In June 1969, a radical Marxist wing of the NLF gained power and on 1 December 1970, reorganized the country into the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY). Subsequently, all political parties were amalgamated into the National Liberation Front, renamed the Yemeni Socialist Party, which became the only legal party. The People's Democratic Republic of Yemen established close ties with the Soviet Union, the People's Republic of China, Cuba, and the Palestinian Liberation Organization. East Germany's consititution of 1968 even served as a kind of blueprint for the PDRY's first constitution.

The major communist powers assisted in the building of the PDRY's armed forces. Strong support from Moscow resulted in Soviet naval forces gaining access to naval facilities in South Yemen.

Unlike East and West Germany or North and South Korea, the YAR and its southern neighbor, the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen (PDRY]), also known as South Yemen, remained relatively friendly, though relations were often strained.

In 1972 the two nations declared that unification would eventually occur. However, these plans were put on hold in 1979, and war was prevented only by an Arab League intervention. The goal of unity was reaffirmed by the northern and southern heads of state during a summit meeting in Kuwait in March 1979.

The conflict
Unlike the early decades of East Germany and West Germany, North Korea and South Korea, or North Vietnam and South Vietnam, North Yemen (YAR) and South Yemen (PDRY) remained relatively friendly, though relations were often strained. Fighting broke out in 1972, and a short-lived, small proxy border conflict was resolved with negotiations, where it was declared unification would eventually occur.

However, these plans were put on hold in 1979, as the PDRY funded Red rebels in the YAR, and war was only prevented by an Arab League intervention. The goal of unity was reaffirmed by the northern and southern heads of state during a summit meeting in Kuwait in March 1979.

The aftermath
In 1980, PDRY president Abdul Fattah Ismail resigned and went into exile in Moscow, having lost the confidence of his sponsors in the USSR. His successor, Ali Nasir Muhammad, took a less interventionist stance toward both North Yemen and neighbouring Oman.

Also see

 * 1) Six-Day War
 * 2) Suez Crisis
 * 3) Middle East
 * 4) Aden Emergency
 * 5) Yom Kippur War
 * 6) Time line of Iraq
 * 7) 1948 Palestine war
 * 8) Iranian Revolution
 * 9) 1970s energy crises
 * 10) Minerals and fuel in central Africa
 * 11) What women should wear in the Middle East
 * 12) Mineral mining, smelting and shipping videos
 * 13) Six-Day War
 * 14) Suez Crisis
 * 15) Aden Emergency
 * 16) Yom Kippur War
 * 17) Time line of Iraq
 * 18) 1948 Palestine war
 * 19) Iranian Revolution
 * 20) 1970s energy crises
 * 21) Minerals and fuel in central Africa
 * 22) What women should wear in the Middle East
 * 23) Mineral mining, smelting and shipping videos
 * 24) North Yemen-South Yemen Border Conflict of 1972
 * 25) Iranian videos page
 * 26) Iran-Iraq war
 * 27) Palestine vs Israel
 * 28) 1970s energy crises
 * 29) 1953 Iranian coup d'état
 * 30) What women should wear in the Middle East
 * 31) Bourj el-Barajneh and it's refugee camp
 * 32) Israel invasion of Lebanon in 1982