Active 1990 - Present Allegiance Yemen Role Maritime warfare Headquarters Aden, Yemen | Country Yemen Type Naval Force Naval Headquarters Branch Navy | |
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Part of Republic of Yemen Armed Forces Similar Republic of Yemen Armed Fo, Yemeni Air Force, Royal Saudi Navy, Iraqi Navy, United Arab Emirates | ||
The Yemeni Navy is the maritime component of the armed forces of Yemen. Yemen's navy was created in 1990 when North and South Yemen united.
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Yemen early on had problems with trying to keep drugs from entering Yemen by sea. In 2006, Yemen purchased 10 Bay-class patrol boats which were very effective at stopping smugglers from entering Yemen. The Bay patrol craft currently under construction are, however, for the Yemeni Coast Guard, not the Yemeni Navy. Likewise, the 10 Austal Patrol Craft belong to the Coast Guard, not the Navy.
In the Hanish Islands Crisis, Yemen prepared its navy for an assault on the Hanish islands and on Eritrea. Eritrea accidentally destroyed a Russian ship, thinking it was a Yemeni ship. The invasion, however, never happened since Eritrea made agreements with Yemen which involved Eritrea taking over the islands. Yemen, however, later took over Zukur-Hanish archipelago island which created further tensions with the Eritrean government but it did not lead to another war.
Yemen is currently on the look out for Somali pirates, due to Yemen's proximity to Somalia. Yemen has greatly tightened its security after attacks on Yemeni ships.
1990 Merger
In 1990, the Navy of South Yemen was merged into the Navy of North Yemen. Of the 11,000 sailors/seamen and 2,700 officers in the PDRY Navy, half were forced into compulsory retirement. The South Yemeni Navy also consisted of 5 Osa class missile boats, 8 T43-class minesweepers and 1 Ropucha-class landing ship, all of which were transferred to the Yemeni Navy.
Yemeni Civil War
Since the outbreak of the civil war in Yemen in March 2015, at least some elements of the Navy are known to have sided with the Houthi-dominated Revolutionary Committee and the loyalists of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh. The Yemeni Navy issued a statement in October 2016 that any Saudi ships intruding in Yemen's territorial waters would be destroyed. The Yemeni Navy and other Houthi forces reportedly destroyed the Emirati HSV-2 Swift and two Saudi warships off the Red Sea coast.
Naval Equipment
Corvette
Missile Boat
Patrol Craft
Utility Craft
Landing Ships
Minesweeper/hunter