Destructive Houthi-Brotherhood alliance in Yemen

Ahmed Adel

Iran’s hopes of exporting its destructive ideology to Yemen were dashed when the Arab coalition started its operations in the country in March 2015.

This was particularly so with the coalition squeezing the pro-Iran Houthi militia and rebuilding state institutions in Yemen.

Nevertheless, a Houthi revival, induced by the capture of Yemeni capital Sana’a and the marginalization of Yemen’s legitimate President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, gave Iran’s mullahs the chance to boast that yet another Arab capital had fallen down to them. Iran then flew its planes loaded with military supplies to the Houthis.

Iranian presence

Iran tried to use extremist groups in controlling Yemen. It also used these groups in destabilizing this country and destroying it. The Houthi militia has always been right at the heart of all these moves. Also present was Islah Party, the political arm of the Muslim Brotherhood in Yemen.

Islah party was founded in 1990. Since its founding, the party played all Yemen’s political players against each other in search for power.

In July this year, some press reports revealed that Islah had stricken an alliance with the Houthis.

Brotherhood leading member Khaled al-Onsi, who lives in Turkey, revealed the presence of an alliance between the Brotherhood, Turkey, Qatar, Iran and the Houthis. He said this alliance offers backing to the Houthi militia in Yemen.

The alliance also became clear when all these parties started acting against the Arab coalition which is led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

In August this year, a Houthi delegation visited Iran. This amounted to an attempt by Iran to capitalize on the latest developments in Aden by drawing Islah Party to it. The party was the prime loser from these developments because it used to control most of Aden in the past.

Islah militia had handed most of the areas it used to control in Aden over to the Houthis without fighting.

The Reference uncovered earlier a trilateral deal between the Houthi militia, Islah Party and al-Qaeda for destabilizing Yemeni cities freedom of Houthi control. The deal was hammered out under Qatari sponsorship.

Hidden alliance

In August this year, head of the Aidarus al-Zoubaidi lashed out at what he described as the “coalition of evil” which wants to bring Yemen down.

He said the developments of the past weeks showed the presence of coordination between the Houthi militia and the Muslim Brotherhood, on one hand, and other terrorist groups active in Yemen, on the other.

He said the Transitional Council would continue to back the Arab coalition in fighting Iranian expansion in Yemen.

Bizarre model

Nizar Haitham, a member of the media council of the Transitional Council, described Islah Party as a bizarre model in political life.

He said the party does not have a clear-cut policy, but an ambiguous one that is full of claims and lies.

“The party gets its directives from Doha and Istanbul,” he sid.

He told The Reference that the Brotherhood and the Houthis have common goals in yemen, namely controlling the country and eradicating the Arab coalition.