April Longley Alley Deputy Program Director, Middle East and North Africa Project Director, Arabian Peninsula Please submit all media inquiries to aalley@crisisgroup.org or call +32 (0) 2 536 00 71 Crisis Group Role April Longley Alley is the Deputy Program Director for the Middle East and North Africa for the International Crisis Group. She joined Crisis Group in 2010, originally working as the Senior Yemen Analyst and from 2017 as the Arabian Peninsula Project Director. Professional Background From June 2018 to January 2019, Dr. Alley took leave to serve as a Senior Political Advisor to the UN Special Envoy of the Secretary General for Yemen. She traveled extensively with the Envoy and participated in two rounds of UN-led political consultations. Prior to joining Crisis Group, she worked as a Research Associate for the National Defense University’s Center for Applied Strategic Learning in Washington, DC. She holds a MA in Arab Studies and a PhD in Government from Georgetown University. A former Fulbright and David L. Boren fellow, Dr. Alley has written extensively on Yemen for a variety of publications including Foreign Affairs, Foreign Policy, PS: Political Science and Politics, The Middle East Journal, and the Journal of Democracy, among others. She has conducted fieldwork in Yemen since 2004 and is a regular contributor to media outlets including: The New York Times, The Washington Post, BBC, NPR and Al-Jazeera. She is a native speaker of English and has professional proficiency in Arabic. Areas of Expertise Middle East Politics with a special focus on Yemen and the Arabian Peninsula Theories of political development Comparative autocracy Mediation Languages English (native) Arabic (professional proficiency) In The News 14 Apr 2020 The prospect of the coronavirus spreading in Yemen offers a moment and indeed a humanitarian imperative to revive a political process. Reuters April Longley Alley Deputy Program Director, Middle East and North Africa 10 Apr 2020 Implementing a cease-fire [between Saudi Arabia and Yemen] is no small matter, and the first test of this is going to be whether the parties show up for this virtual meeting. New York Times April Longley Alley Deputy Program Director, Middle East and North Africa 27 Oct 2019 A successful agreement [between the Yemeni government and southern secessionists] would keep a lid on violence long enough to allow progress in other parts of the country. Financial Times April Longley Alley Deputy Program Director, Middle East and North Africa 3 Feb 2018 The narrative of a ‘legitimate government’ [in Yemen] fighting the ‘Iranian-backed Houthis’ obscures a complex local reality, and it hinders efforts to achieve peace. The Washington Post April Longley Alley Deputy Program Director, Middle East and North Africa 22 Jan 2018 [In early 2011] we were all debating what [the Arab Spring] would mean for Yemen, exactly, and I remember [Sana'a's mayor Abdulqader Hilal] saying it wouldn’t be the same. The New Yorker April Longley Alley Deputy Program Director, Middle East and North Africa 20 Dec 2017 Les [rebelles] houthistes [du Yémen] considèrent [les] tirs [de missiles balistique sur Riyad] comme leur meilleure chance de forcer Riyad à chercher un compromis. Le Monde April Longley Alley Deputy Program Director, Middle East and North Africa Latest Updates Op-Ed / Middle East & North Africa 11 November 2019 Peace Is Possible in Yemen Out of a Moment of Crisis, a Chance for a Solution. Originally published in Foreign Affairs Also available in العربية Commentary / Middle East & North Africa 21 October 2019 How to End the War in Yemen Since the September attack on Saudi oil facilities, Riyadh and the Houthis have taken a step back from all-out war. All parties, including the United States, should seize this rare opportunity to resolve the conflict. Originally published in Foreign Policy Also available in العربية Our Journeys / Middle East & North Africa 23 May 2018 Eight Days in Aden – a Forgotten City in Yemen’s Forgotten War Two and a half years after the last major fighting in the southern port city of Aden, officially Yemen’s “temporary capital”, our Arabian Peninsula Project Director April Longley Alley finds a patchwork of rival armed forces, buildings in ruins and political groups’ effective steps toward autonomy, if not outright separation. Also available in العربية Op-Ed / Middle East & North Africa 19 March 2018 Saudi Arabia’s Leader Could Tell a Better Story if He’d End His Vicious, No-win War Originally published in The Washington Post Also available in العربية Op-Ed / Middle East & North Africa 11 January 2018 Collapse of the Houthi-Saleh Alliance and the Future of Yemen’s War Originally published in Project on Middle East Political Science Load more