Houthis

29 Oct 2024 12:48:38 pm

Tags : Houthis

Topic: West Asia

Why in the news?

With a floundering economy and growing restrictions on personal freedoms, 10 years of Houthi rule has left its mark on Yemen’s ancient capital, Sanaa, where some quietly long for how things once were.
The Houthis, a radical political-military group from Yemen’s northern mountains, have imposed strict rule over the large swathe of Yemen under their control, covering two-thirds of the population

Source: The Hindu

About Houthis:

The Houthis, officially known as Ansar Allah (Partisans of God), are an Iranian-backed Shiite Muslim military and political movement in Yemen.
Its members, who subscribe to the minority Zaidi sect of Shiite Islam, advocate regional autonomy for Zaidis in northern Yemen.
- Shiite Muslims are the minority community in the Islamic world, and Zaidis are a minority of Shiites, significantly different in doctrine and beliefs from the Shiites who dominate in Iran, Iraq, and elsewhere.
- They are a minority in Yemen, which is predominantly Sunni Muslim, but they are a significant one, numbering in the hundreds of thousands and making up as much as a third of the overall population.
The group emerged in the 1990s and takes its name from the movement\'s late founder, Hussein al-Houthi.
The Houthi movement began as an effort to maintain tribal autonomy in northern Yemen and protest Western influence in the Middle East.
They have been fighting Yemen’s Sunni-majority government since 2004.
The Houthis took over the Yemeni capital Sanaa in September 2014 and seized control over much of north Yemen by 2016. Currently, Houthis controls approximately one-third of Yemen’s territory.
Today, the Houthis seek a greater role in the Yemeni government and continue to advocate for Zaidi minority interests.
The movement is known for its virulently anti-American and anti-Semitic rhetoric.
Several of the group’s leaders have been designated as terrorists by the United States.

Yemen:

It is a country in West Asia.
Located in southern Arabia, it borders:
- Saudi Arabia to the north
- Oman to the northeast
- Red Sea to the west
- Indian Ocean to the south
It shares maritime borders with Eritrea, Djibouti and Somalia across the Horn of Africa.
Covering roughly 528,000 sq. km., with a coastline of approximately 2,000 km., Yemen is the second largest country on the Arabian Peninsula.
Sanaa is its constitutional capital and largest city.
Yemen\'s estimated population is 34.7 million, mostly Arab Muslims.
It is a member of the Arab League, the United Nations, the Non-Aligned Movement and the Organisation of Islamic Cooperation.