Neither the biblical text nor archeological evidence supports the enduring misconception that Jewish slaves in Egypt built the pyramids. But references in the book of Exodus to the Israelites gathering straw to make mudbricks, and having specific quotas to fill, resemble quite closely slave labor as described in ancient Egyptian texts. David Falk, drawing on the latest scholarship, makes some specific conjectures about the construction projects these slaves may have been involved in:

Brickmaking was a [typical] labor specialization . . . for slaves in ancient Egypt. . . . Exodus 1:11 alludes to the Israelites building Egyptian storage cities: “So they appointed taskmasters over them to afflict them with hard labor. And they built for Pharaoh storage cities, Pithom and Ramses.”

These storage cities are not simply coterminous with Pithom and Rameses, since these two cities had a variety of buildings that included stone temples. In other words, Pithom and Rameses cannot properly be described as “storage” cities, and thus the verse likely refers to structures within these cities—probably a series of mudbrick depots attached to the temples used to store vast quantities of food. . . . Examples of storage depots can be found surrounding several mortuary temples.

The reason the temples needed such storage depots was because Egypt had a barter economy that did not use money. Any temple cult lasted only so long as there was food to make offerings and feed priests. Storing food for offerings was essential for a temple to continue operating. Many of the temples in Egypt could not rely upon state support once the king died, and this was especially true of royal mortuary temples.

The storage cities ensured a constant supply of offerings for a king’s mortuary . . . following his death. Given these circumstances, Pharaoh’s command forcing the Israelites to build these storage depots was more than just slavery. It was a command to make God’s chosen people labor in service to gods other than Him.

Last Sunday marked the eighth anniversary of a Saudi-led alliance’s intervention in the Yemeni civil war, intended to defeat the Iran-backed Houthi militia that had overthrown the previous government. In the wake of the rapprochement between Riyadh and Tehran, diplomats are hoping that the talks between the Saudis and the Houthis—which have been ongoing since last summer—will finally succeed in ending the war. To Nadwa Al-Dawsari, such an outcome seems highly unlikely:

The Houthis’ military gains have allowed them to dictate the path of international diplomacy in Yemen. They know Saudi Arabia is desperate to extricate itself and the international community wants the Yemen problem to go away. They do not recognize and refuse to negotiate with the [Riyadh-supported] Presidential Leadership Council or other Yemeni factions that they cast as “Saudi mercenaries.”

Indeed, even as the Houthis were making progress in talks with the Saudis, the rebel group continued to expand its recruitment, mobilization, and stockpiling of arms during last year’s truce as Iran significantly increased its weapons shipments. The group also carried out a series of attacks. . . . On March 23, the Houthis conducted a military drill close to the Saudi border to remind the Saudis of “the cost of no agreement and further concessions.”

The Houthis are still part and parcel of Iran’s so-called “axis of resistance.” With the Houthis gaining international political recognition, . . . Iran will have a greater chance to expand its influence in Yemen with the blessing of Western powers. The international community is eager for a “success story” in Yemen, even if that means a sham political settlement that will likely see the civil war continue. A deal with the Houthis is Saudi Arabia’s desperate plea to wash its hands of Yemen, but in the long term it could very well position Iran to threaten regional and international security. More importantly, it might set Yemen on a course of protracted conflict that will create vast ungoverned spaces.

Meanwhile, tensions in Yemen between Saudi Arabia and its ostensible ally, the United Arab Emirates, are rising, while the Houthis are developing the capability to launch missiles at Israel or to block a crucial Middle Eastern maritime chokepoint in the Red Sea.