Northern Yemen: War Merchants and a Touch of Treachery
Politicians in northern Yemen have long been known as crisis merchants who ignite wars to profit from them, despite the pain, killing, and suffering inflicted upon their own people. In this regard, there is ample evidence demonstrating their mastery of the art of treachery and betrayal.
A review of history reveals how these figures have meddled extensively in Yemeni affairs since Abraha al-Ashram. This raises the question: Is history repeating itself? Was the missile launched by the Houthi group intended to sabotage the Holy Kaaba? Were the attempts to bomb Mecca with missiles during the height of confrontations in Operation Decisive Storm aimed at destroying the Kaaba?
Reflecting on these events, the statement made by former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh—that his rule “danced on the heads of snakes”—was not baseless. Rather, it reflected the political environment in the north, whether during the revolution against the monarchy, the secession, or the unification imposed by internal conditions in Sanaa. Two years later, fighting erupted between the North and the South, as northerners sought to monopolize all power, reducing southerners to second-class citizens.
Several incidents highlight the betrayal by northern Arab politicians and southerners alike, starting with the 1962 Yemeni Revolution, which ended with the mediation of King Faisal bin Abdulaziz (may God have mercy on him), who presented the war’s conclusion as a gift to Gamal Abdel Nasser. This continued through the invasion of Kuwait and Sanaa’s stance at the time, including Ali Abdullah Saleh’s boast that he would seize billions from Kuwait’s “Generations Fund” once Saddam Hussein consolidated power. These claims were made by Saleh and reported by Yemeni and Arab media outlets.
Thus, we see today that the Houthis have replaced the ancient Abraha with a contemporary Persian counterpart who shares the same agenda, if not more. He is actively working to alter social and religious cultures, as we have stated repeatedly. Unfortunately, Arab and Islamic nations have not taken this seriously.
Therefore, statements of condemnation and denunciation are insufficient to counter aggression that exposes the hidden intentions of the Tehran regime, which targets the entire Islamic world, not just Saudi Arabia and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries. Since the advent of the “Ayatollah” regime, it has sought to disrupt pilgrims during every Hajj season through riots. Since then, the Islamic world should have recognized this malicious behavior, but unfortunately, it did not. Instead, the regime expanded its influence into Arab states. Consequently, the current Houthi-Iranian campaign is not a reaction to a specific incident, but part of a grand plan carefully woven and pursued through multiple channels to achieve its objectives.
Today, after the closure of the Strait of Hormuz and Houthi attempts to close the Bab al-Mandab, the issue is no longer solely Saudi. For 15 years, Saudi Arabia bore this abnormal situation and paid a heavy price to contain the Iranian group in northern Yemen, succeeding in doing so. However, the world must now seriously strive to stop the disruption of the global economy caused by destabilizing navigation security in the Bab al-Mandab and the Strait of Hormuz.
