麻豆约拍

Jeremy Bowen analyses the conflict in Yemen and the role of Saudi Arabia. "The war has been catastrophic, bending and breaking Yemen, which was already fragile," he says. Saudi Arabia has launched a campaign of bombing and shelling in Yemen because of fears of Iranian involvement with its poor and divided neighbour. "A glance at relatively recent history might have told the Saudis that there is no such thing as an easy war in Yemen."

Jeremy Bowen reflects on the present and the past of the Middle East, after reporting from the region for more than a quarter of a century. He combines first-hand accounts from the front line with an in-depth look into the region's history. He has witnessed endless wars between individuals, religious groups and full-sized states, jostling for military, political and economic power. He has interviewed dictators, fanatics and fundamentalists as well as the ordinary people caught up in their dangerous games. In that time, the past has always been present, providing motivation and political ammunition . Bowen has made headlines himself and he has paid a personal price, coming under fire and losing a colleague in the course of reporting - on the worst day, he says, in his life.

Producers: Ben Crighton and Cara Swift.