Power and money struggle... An existential risk threat to Houthi influence

English - Saturday 01 April 2023 الساعة 01:07 pm
Mocha, NewsYemen, special report:

Large sums and huge numbers were swallowed up by the Houthi group during the war period, from imposing illegal levies on citizens, to stealing state revenues and imposing royalties in the name of the war effort, all money going to the stomachs of the group's supervisors and influential people.

The money looted by Iran's arm, and which went to the benefit of personalities and leaders in the first ranks of the coup group, is what observers believe is capable of dismantling the militia's cohesion, as the group turned into a time bomb that almost reveals the militia's fragility.

While activists see that the cohesion of the Houthis at the current stage is a formal cohesion imposed on them by the war, they believe that there are other ideological factors in addition to money and wealth, which will reveal the falsity of this cohesion with the escalation of the struggle of the wings that will reach an internal war that may break out between the militia leaders, greed for power and influence.  

forbidden money

The internal structure of the Houthi group is formed from the tribal nature of Yemeni society, while a group of anarchists and personalities known for their models of militias occupy leadership positions in their Iran-funded camps, which is evident in their perceptions that contradict the concepts of a civil state.

This discrepancy in the hierarchical structure of the group has made it more like an organization that aims to enhance personal influence and accumulate material wealth, but at the same time it reveals the truth about the cohesion that the militias are trying to export to public opinion, as it looks in reality more like water from under a straw.

During the war, the Houthis were able to accumulate huge funds and wealth, by exploiting the repressive power imposed on the Yemenis by force of arms, but these wealth will represent a factor for popular uprisings that threaten the group's existence, in addition to the outbreak of internal conflicts because of this money.  According to observers.

In this context, journalist Yaqoub Al-Sami'i says, "The Houthis earn a lot of money annually, more than what the Yemeni state used to earn during the most fertile era of revenue and the glory of administrative centralization."

Al-Sami'i added, in his interview with "Newsyemen": "The staggering figures of the Houthis' income indicate that the group is continuing to deplete the public and private sectors, down to the simple citizen, through zakat and the war effort, which enhances the possibilities of a comprehensive uprising in the future."

And he added, "But at the same time, these funds are likely to strengthen the struggle of the wings within the group, and signs of this conflict have appeared during the last period, although it has remained under control until now."

He said, "This amount of money will result in competition that will fatally divide the group, especially if the current war recedes and the Houthis focus on collecting taxes."

hollow faith

The Houthi group's fears are formed from the core of its faith, as it does not believe in any of the vocabulary of political partnership, while its internal approach justifies those who claim to belong to the family of the House the right to turn against power, even if the power is also an Imami Hashemite.

Activists believe that the same ideological vocabulary that justified the Houthis' war against the Yemenis represents an existential threat against its authority in the event that the war ends, as it justifies for others the implementation of the same plan against the group's influence in search of power and influence.

In this context, activist Dawoud al-Ahdal says: "The Imamate in Yemen has always been eroded from within, and the Houthis are part of this dynastic project, and although Iran has provided them with a police system to suppress any attempt at rebellion, it is still domesticated and bombed from within."  .

Al-Ahdal added, in the context of his interview with "Newsyemen": "The doctrinal doctrine of the group makes it fear itself more, especially as it may be subject to coups at any time, and this is justified by their doctrine throughout history."

He pointed out that "the doctrinal doctrine of the Salafis in Yemen brought them into long-term inter-conflicts, as their vocabulary affirms the right of guardianship for every Hashemite who went out against the people with his sword, which inflicted great losses on the Imamate regimes in Yemen and plunged them into wars for long periods."

He stated that "internal conflicts between families claiming affiliation with the family of the House and claiming the right of guardianship have reached the point where Sana'a was divided at one stage into seven states, each with its own imam."