Saleh's Murder Unites Yemenis: The Savage Wolves Houthis Finished As Decision Makers In This Big War
08 December 2017By Abdulrahman Al-Rashed
Had President Ali Abdullah Saleh been killed five days ago, the Saudi-led
coalition and the legitimate government would have been blamed for his murder.
But, Saleh was killed by the Houthis after he had terminated his alliance with
them.
By killing Saleh, the Houthis have practically become rivals to all of Yemen's
components as Saleh was their only alleged patriotic card and their political
front before the Yemenis and the world.
The war map in Yemen dramatically changed the night he appeared in a televised
speech announcing his acceptance of the reconciliation, and his assassination
will not stop the new change he imposed.
The question now is whether the late president can manage the battle from his
grave by allying with the legitimate government and confronting the Houthis?
In other words, will his influence, institutions, and men who have been loyal
to him, his instructions and ideas as result of his forty years of influence,
carry on?
What we know is that all attempts to abolish Saleh have failed in the past.
Even after he was forced to quit as a result of popular protests, he continued
to be a leader. Also, after the assassination attempt at al-Nahdayn mosque,
everyone thought he was finished. He spent months in a military hospital in
Riyadh for burn treatment.
Saleh surprised everyone after he returned, ruled Sanaa, and managed political
and military battles. This is why Houthis finally decided to kill him; not to
retaliate because he turned against them but because he's capable of
destroying their political project.
A few days ago, he altered the equation when he ended his alliance with the
Houthis and cut the number of the legitimate government's enemies to half,
shrinking areas controlled by the armed insurgency.
Saleh abandoned the enemy camp and joined the allies camp which would have
expedited Houthis' defeat and ended the main war. But Saleh's murder was meant
to reshuffle the deck and stop the reconciliation project.
As long as we realize that Saleh's assassination is aimed at thwarting the
reconciliation, we must work to ensure its success.
What the late president did in the last four days of his life is the most
important development since the war began three years ago. It will boost
operations against Houthis and besiege them in their areas north of Yemen,
that is, of course, if Saleh army's commanders decided to participate in the
fighting alongside ranks of the Yemeni army.
In the past few days, Saleh tried to liberate the capital, which has been
occupied by the insurgents since 2014, when Houthis seized the headquarters of
the First Division and the remaining military and security institutions were
defeated without much resistance.
Questions today revolve around the size of Houthis' power in Sanaa, with
rumors claiming they are the strongest party and that any attempt to get them
out would cause a bloody war between the two sides in the city's historic
streets. It was difficult to figure out the truth but assassinating President
Saleh proved that Houthis are an influential power.
In the past, Sanaa was Saleh's stronghold and Houthis could only enter and
occupy after his approval. But, ever since they entered the capital, they
seized arms' warehouses, bought loyalties and laid plans for the day when they
clash with their ally Saleh, and perhaps assassinate him and take control of
the capital.
The new reality is critical, dangerous, and requires Yemeni army and the
coalition forces to enter Sanaa and work with Saleh's forces that are in
shock. The people of Sanaa and forces of late Saleh have a great interest in
going to war to restore their city from Houthis.
In his televised speech, the late president called for lifting the siege,
including resuming military and civil navigation in the airport for the first
time since the beginning of the war and reopening crossings for aid convoys
and trade activity. It is not possible to do so after Saleh's assassination
without entering into a new alliance with Saleh's forces and deterring Houthis
in Sanaa.
If the reconciled parties agree on managing Sanaa, it will be reconstructed
faster and restore its role as the administrative capital of the country,
after most governmental institutions had been moved to Aden as a temporary
alternative capital.
People of Sanaa, leaders of the General People's Congress and commanders of
Saleh's forces must realize the importance of change which Saleh adopted and
was killed for. They must defend his decision and project.
What about the savage wolves, i.e. Houthis? They succeeded in getting rid of
Saleh, their new enemy, and disrupting his plan. Yet, practically, they're
finished as decision makers in this big war.
Their hope to influence the shape of the governing political system is over.
The Houthis went from being partners in governance to murderers of Saleh.
This is a crime they cannot justify, and by losing Saleh, they became nothing
more than Iran's militias against Yemenis.
Abdulrahman Al-Rashed is the former general manager of Al-Arabiya
television. He is also the former editor-in-chief of Asharq Al-Awsat, and the
leading Arabic weekly magazine Al-Majalla. He is also a senior columnist in
the daily newspapers Al-Madina and Al-Bilad.
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EsinIslam.Com
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