Watch part two

There is little going right for the Yemeni government right now. The country hit the spotlight after it was alleged that the Nigerian 'underwear bomber,' who attempted to blow up an American airliner on Christmas day, was trained by an al-Qaeda group there.

Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, the merged Saudi and Yemeni al-Qaeda cells, has based itself in Yemen, and has claimed responsibility for a number of terror attacks there.

They are credited with an attempt on the US embassy in the capital Sanaa, killing 16 people, last September.

Shia Houthi rebels are causing headaches for the government in the north and seperatists are waging a civil war in the south.

Meanwhile, an unemployment rate of more than 40 per cent is crippling the country.

Worried Western governments have begun shutting their embassies, fearing increased violence. But the US and Britain have also promised military aid for the Yemeni government.

On this edition of the Riz Khan show we ask if, given the weight of the challenges facing Yemen, the country is on the verge of becoming a failed state.

Riz is joined by Barbara Bodine, a former US ambassador to Yemen, and the Carnegie Endowment's Christopher Boucek, who writes frequently on Yemen.

This episode of the Riz Khan show aired on Monday, January 4.