Houthi violations against tribes... terrorist practices that threaten the future of the group
English - Tuesday 19 September 2023 الساعة 03:36 pm
Sanaa, NewsYemen, exclusive:
From Sanaa to Amran and Al-Mahwit, all the way to its main stronghold in Saada, Houthi violations against the Yemeni tribes continue to seize their lands and property by force of arms, while the group’s supervisors and influential loyalists intend to fuel conflicts between the tribes with the aim of weakening them and dismantling their cohesion.
While popular discontent is growing against the oppression operations carried out by Iran’s arm against the tribes, it has recently turned into an armed confrontation, bringing the rhetoric opposing the group’s practices to its main stronghold in Saada Governorate, as the past few days have witnessed armed confrontations between military campaigns affiliated with the Houthis, and tribal militants who went out for defense. Their lands and property from the theft of the group.
While observers believe that the militia’s repeated attacks have exacerbated the state of popular anger in the various areas under its control, they believe that the escalation of societal rejection of the group in Saada Governorate, which is often described as one of its most important centers of influence, is an indicator of a shift in the position of the tribal and social environment in the governorate, which will raise The level of popular rejection in the remaining provinces affected by Iran’s influence.
A broken stronghold
Since its rebellion against the state on September 21, 2014 AD, the Houthi group has focused on Saada Governorate, which represented its geography to establish its influence at the general level, as it worked to completely isolate the governorate from the Yemeni map, to distance it from any factors that threaten its existence, to reduce within it its full capabilities.
Iran's arm sought to export Saada as a theater of its influence and a pivotal station for its military capabilities. However, observers believe that the terrorist nature of the group, and its oppressive practices against tribes to steal their lands and property, undermined the image that the militia sought to export from the governorate.
In this context, journalist and political analyst Abdel-Wasi’ al-Fataki says that the Houthis’ practices reveal many facts, including society’s rejection of them in their main stronghold in Saada Governorate.
In the context of his talk to "NewsYemen", Al-Fateki pointed out that the Houthis are committing various serious violations in the areas still under their control, and Saada Governorate has received the largest share of these violations, since they launched their war against the Republic and the Yemeni state in 2004.
While he believes that the Houthis consider Saada Governorate in particular, a sacred stronghold for them, and even their own property, in which no political or social component disputes them and whose tribes owe absolute loyalty to them. As he put it.
It is believed that this belief, which he describes as the Houthi dream, is due to the fact that Saada Governorate represented the birthplace of the Houthi movement, the place where it was founded and from which it spread, and to which the movement’s founders and leadership belonged, starting from Badr al-Din al-Houthi and his sons to the movement’s field leaders.
He said: "From this standpoint, the Houthis sought to tighten control over Saada and all its tribal, social and political components, which made them commit serious crimes against citizens, which varied between forced displacement and plundering of money and property, not to mention murder and forced disappearance."
He added: "The Houthis mistakenly believed, during the recent period, that they had subjugated the tribes of Saada, to the point that they lost the ability to resist and oppose their plundering behavior and violence against the Saada tribes and clans, but they were recently surprised by fierce resistance and armed confrontation against the backdrop of their seizure of tribal lands and property, which... "It portends an expansion of the circle of anti-Houthi rejection in the near future."
He pointed out that "the presence of armed resistance against the Houthis in Saada, which they see as their main incubator and which no political or social component can dispute with them, indicates that the image that the Houthis were keen to establish about Saada, especially as it is a governorate confined to them, has been dissipated through the confrontations." And the fierce resistance of some tribes against the Houthis.”
He concluded by saying: “This armed movement of the tribes against the group comes in defense of their property and lands, which means that what the Houthis believe about their authority and the stability of the matter for them, is a kind of fantasy, hopes and false dreams, which will soon evaporate as the Houthis continue to take away people’s rights and confiscate their freedoms.” And attacking their property and money, which will create a revolutionary movement in the future that will put an end to the tyranny of the militia.”
Time bomb
The practices of the Houthi group and its targeting of Yemeni tribes in areas under its control put the tribal component before the option of armed confrontation, which has appeared in various governorates afflicted by the militia, especially with the Houthi gang exploiting the state’s powerful weapons to suppress local communities and rob their property.
Observers believe that the anti-Houthi rhetoric derives its strength from the group's repeated practices, as they point out that local communities have turned, as a result of these terrorist violations, into a time bomb that may explode in the face of the militia with a force that will be difficult for it to suppress, especially with the growing social feeling of the inevitability of resisting Houthi violence.
According to journalist Salah Al-Jundi, the practices of the Houthi militia against tribes and local communities in areas under its control are pushing the Yemenis to a point that may be critical for the group, and will undoubtedly threaten its security and existence in the future. As he put it.
Speaking to NewsYemen, Al-Jundi said: “The policy of oppression and intimidation that the Houthis take as a means to humiliate the tribes and rob them of their rights and property, is the same policy that undermined the rule of the Imamate and ended with the revolution of September 26, 1962.”
While he believes that the Houthi group is currently repeating the same mistakes and follies that the Imamate committed, this is an indication of the approaching end of the Houthis’ authority and influence, which has become a threat to the Yemeni tribe and society in general.
It is believed that the practices of the Houthi gang will not end, but rather represent an extension of the group’s goals of humiliating the tribes and dismantling their social fabric, which may push the tribal component to resist its aggressive behavior, as happened in Sanaa and Amran, as well as Saada Governorate.
