Houthi movement

Extracted Attributes

• Slogan

  God is the Greatest, Death to America, Death to Israel, A Curse Upon the Jews, Victory to Islam

• Status

  Designated as a terrorist organization by multiple nations

• Founder

  Hussein al-Houthi

• Ideology

  Zaydi Shia Islamism, Anti-imperialism, Yemeni Nationalism

• Headquarters

  Sanaa, Yemen (De facto)

• Founding Date

  1990s

• Official Name

  Ansar Allah

• Current Leader

  Abdul-Malik al-Houthi

Timeline

• The Houthi movement emerges as a Zaydi revivalist group in northern Yemen. (Source: Britannica)

  1990-01-01

• The group adopts its official slogan and opposes the US-led invasion of Iraq. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2003-01-01

• Founder Hussein al-Houthi is killed by the Yemeni military, sparking the Houthi insurgency. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2004-09-10

• The movement participates in the Yemeni Revolution and street protests. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2011-01-01

• Houthi forces take control of the Yemeni capital, Sanaa. (Source: DNI.gov)

  2014-09-21

• A Saudi-led military intervention begins to restore the recognized Yemeni government. (Source: Wikipedia)

  2015-03-26

• Houthis begin launching missiles at Israel and attacking commercial ships in the Red Sea in solidarity with Gaza. (Source: d6ad65b4-1ee6-41ad-b655-1afeb7fa17c9)

  2023-10-19

Houthis

The Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah, is a Zaydi revivalist and Islamist political and military organization that emerged from Yemen in the 1990s. It is predominantly made up of Zaydis, whose namesake leadership is drawn largely from the al-Houthi family. The group has been a central player in Yemen's civil war, drawing widespread international condemnation for its human rights abuses, including targeting civilians and using child soldiers. The movement is designated as a terrorist organization by some countries. The Houthis are backed by Iran, and they are widely considered part of the Iranian-led "Axis of Resistance". Under the leadership of Zaydi religious leader Hussein al-Houthi, the Houthis emerged as an opposition movement to Yemen president Ali Abdullah Saleh, whom they accused of corruption and being backed by Saudi Arabia and the United States. In 2003, influenced by the Lebanese Shia political and military organization Hezbollah, the Houthis adopted their official slogan against the United States, Israel, and the Jews. Al-Houthi resisted Saleh's order for his arrest, and was afterwards killed by the Yemeni military in Saada in 2004, sparking the Houthi insurgency. Since then, the movement has been mostly led by his brother Abdul-Malik al-Houthi. The organization took part in the Yemeni Revolution of 2011 by participating in street protests and coordinating with other Yemeni opposition groups. They joined Yemen's National Dialogue Conference but later rejected the 2011 reconciliation deal. In late 2014, the Houthis repaired their relationship with Saleh, and with his help they took control of the capital city. The takeover prompted a Saudi-led military intervention to restore the internationally recognized government, leading to an ongoing civil war which included missile and drone attacks against Saudi Arabia and its ally United Arab Emirates. Following the outbreak of the Gaza war, the Houthis began to fire missiles at Israel and to attack ships off Yemen's coast in the Red Sea, which they say is in solidarity with the Palestinians and aiming to facilitate entry of humanitarian aid into the Gaza Strip. The Houthi movement attracts followers in Yemen by portraying themselves as fighting for economic development and the end of the political marginalization of Zaydi Shias, as well as by promoting regional political–religious issues in its media. The Houthis have a complex relationship with Yemen's Sunnis; the movement has discriminated against Sunnis but has also allied with and recruited them. The Houthis aim to govern all of Yemen and support external movements against the United States, Israel, and Saudi Arabia. Because of the Houthis' ideological background, the conflict in Yemen is widely seen as a front of the Iran–Saudi Arabia proxy war.

Web Search Results

• Huthi Movement - National Counterterrorism Center | Terrorist Groups

  The Huthi Movement, a.k.a. Ansarallah (Helpers of God), is a Yemen-based, Zaydi Shia Islamist political and military organization backed by Iran. The group controls much of northern Yemen and has attacked US, Israeli, Gulf Arab, and Western interests in the region. Since the start of the Israel-HAMAS conflict in 2023, the Huthis have attacked commercial and military ships in the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden and have conducted UAS and missile strikes against Israel. [...] The Huthi Movement emerged in the 1990s and espoused religious revivalism, increased autonomy for northern Yemen, and decreased Western influence in the region. The Huthis opposed Yemen’s support for the US-led invasion of Iraq in 2003. Starting in 2004, the Huthis led an insurgency against the Yemeni Government, and in 2014, the Huthis took control of the capital, Sanaa. During the 2014-2022 civil war, the group fought the Yemeni Government, which was backed by Saudi Arabia and the UAE, and [...] against Emirati, Saudi, Yemeni and forces from 2014 to 2022.

• Houthi movement | Yemen, Rebels, Red Sea Attacks, History ...

  Houthi movement, Islamic fundamentalist movement in northern Yemen and one of the main actors in the Yemeni Civil War (2014– ). The network grew out of a revivalist movement among Zaydī Muslims, who belong to a small sect of Shiʿi Islam centered in northern Yemen, that opposed foreign influence on the Yemeni government. Crackdowns against the movement in the early 21st century led it to take up arms, and, with aid from Iran during the civil war, it became a powerful military force. By 2020 [...] The Houthi movement, also known as Anṣār Allāh, is an Islamic fundamentalist movement in northern Yemen, originating from a revivalist movement among Zaydī Muslims. It opposes foreign influence on the Yemeni government and became a powerful military force with Iran’s aid during the Yemeni Civil War. ### Who founded the Houthi movement? The Houthi movement was founded by Hussein Badr al-Din al-Houthi, a politician and Zaydī activist. ### How did the Houthi movement gain military power? [...] ## Background and origins The Houthi movement calls itself Anṣār Allāh (“Defenders of God”). The more popular term, Houthi, refers to its founding figure, a politician and Zaydī activist named Hussein Badr al-Din al-Houthi.

• Houthis - Wikipedia

  The Houthi movement follows a mixed ideology with religious, Yemeni nationalist, and big tent-populist elements, imitating Hezbollah. Outsiders have argued that the group's ideological tenets are often vague and self-contradictory and that many of its slogans do not accurately reflect its aims. According to American historian Bernard Haykel, the movement's founder, Hussein al-Houthi, was influenced by a variety of religious traditions and political ideologies, making it difficult to fit him or [...] The Houthi movement attracts followers in Yemen by portraying themselves as fighting for economic development and the end of the political marginalization of Zaydi Shias, as well as by promoting regional political–religious issues in its media. The Houthis have a complex relationship with Yemen's Sunnis; the movement has discriminated against Sunnis but has also allied with and recruited them. The Houthis aim to govern all of Yemen and support external movements against the United States, [...] In general, the Houthi movement has centered its belief system on the Zaydi branch of Islam, a sect almost exclusively present in Yemen. Zaydis form about 25% of the population, with Sunnis comprising the other 75%. Zaydi-led governments ruled Yemen for a thousand years up until 1962. The Houthi movement has often advocated for Zaydi revivalism in Yemen since its foundation.

• Houthi insurgency - Wikipedia

  The Houthi insurgency, also known as the Sa'dah Wars, was a military rebellion pitting Zaidi Shia Houthis that began in northern Yemen and has since escalated into a full-scale civil war "Yemeni Civil War (2014–present)"). The conflict was sparked in 2004 by the government's attempt to arrest Hussein al-Houthi, a Zaidi religious leader of the Houthis and a former parliamentarian on whose head the government had placed a $55,000 bounty.

• Who are Yemen's Houthis? - Wilson Center

  The following is an overview of the Houthi movement, including its origins, religious inspiration and alleged links to Iran. ##### Where are the Houthis from? What role have they played in Yemen's history? The Houthis are a large clan originating from Yemen’s northwestern Saada province. They practice the Zaydi form of Shiism. Zaydis make up around 35 percent of Yemen’s population. [...] Houthi insurgents have clashed with Yemen’s government for more than a decade. Since 2011, the Houthi movement has expanded beyond its Zaydi roots and become a wider movement opposed to the central government. The insurgents have also begun referring to themselves as Ansarullah, or “Party of God.” ##### How does Zaydism compare to the type of Shiism practiced in Iran? [...] A Zaydi imamate ruled Yemen for 1,000 years, before being overthrown in 1962. Since then, the Zaydis – stripped of their political power – have struggled to restore their authority and influence in Yemen. In the 1980s, the Houthi clan began a movement to revive Zaydi traditions, feeling threatened by state-funded Salafist preachers who established a base in Houthi areas. Not all Zaydis, however, align with the Houthi movement.