A fragile alliance between former rivals collapsed, triggering a brief, violent battle in Sanaa.
In short: In 2017, the tactical partnership between Yemen's former president Ali Abdullah Saleh and the Houthi movement shattered. After Saleh attempted to pivot toward a Saudi-led coalition, a fierce internal conflict erupted in the capital. The resulting power struggle ended with Saleh's assassination and a decisive victory for the Houthis.
The alliance between Ali Abdullah Saleh and the Houthis was always tenuous, built on shared administrative control rather than ideological alignment. Saleh, who served as president from 1990 to 2012, had been deposed during the 2011 Yemeni revolution, a movement the Houthis supported. However, both sides found common ground in their opposition to the government of Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, which had been appointed by the Gulf Cooperation Council. When the Hadi administration removed fuel subsidies, widespread protests allowed the Houthis to seize control of government buildings in Sanaa, eventually leading to the government's resignation.
By late 2017, the relationship between Saleh and the Houthis had deteriorated. On 2 December, four days after fighting began, Saleh announced his intention to open a new chapter with the Saudi-led coalition. This pivot was encouraged by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, who had been working to dismantle the Houthi-Saleh partnership after failing to defeat the Houthis through military force alone. As Saudi warplanes bombed Houthi positions to support Saleh, the conflict intensified within the city, involving various tribal groups and the General People's Congress.
The battle turned decisively against Saleh's loyalists as many fighters defected to the Houthi side. On 4 December, Houthi forces ambushed Saleh's vehicle with a rocket-propelled grenade as he attempted to flee toward Saudi-controlled territory; he was subsequently killed by a sniper. Following his death, the remaining pro-Saleh forces were routed, and the Houthi leadership declared the end of the conspiracy. The conflict resulted in over 200 deaths, and the General People's Congress ultimately elected a new chairman, Sadeq Ameen Abu Rass, while many of its members pledged their allegiance to the Houthi movement.
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Sources
- Summary by Intellect · source: Battle of Sanaa (2017)
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