A conflict has been escalating among the Iran-backed Houthi leaderships over gaining power and followers in Yemen, revealed sources close to the militias in Sanaa.
The dispute recently pushed Houthi leader, Abdulmalek al-Houthi, to side with the factions that are aligned with so-called supreme council leader Mahdi Mshat.
Houthi sensed an impending rebellion being plotted against him by his relatives, led by his uncle Abdulkarim al-Houthi, the interior minister in the coup government, and his cousin, Mohammed Ali al-Houthi, who heads the so-called higher revolution council in the militias.
The sources revealed that several of the Houthi leaders’ orders have been recently ignored by his relatives, pushing him to side with Mshat.
Mshat, who like Abdulmalek, hails from the Saada province, had ousted Abdulrab Jarfan from leading the national security agency in Sanaa. He replaced him with another Saada native, Fayez Hussein. Jarfan was known for his close ties to Mohammed Ali.
Mshat was also tasked by Abdulmalek to curb the powers of the Houthi leader’s relatives. The sources said that he has shifted his focus on reining in their influence in the telecommunications, taxation and customs sectors.
He tasked telecommunications minister Musfer al-Nameer, another Saada native, to introduce major changes in the sector, which reaps in massive funds for the militias. Their attention has shifted to this sector after a drop in revenues from the Houthis’ smuggling of Iranian oil from Hodeidah port.
One of Nameer’s first moves was replacing the head of the Yemen Mobile company, Sadiq Mosleh, who is loyal to Mohammed Ali. He was replaced with Issam al-Hamli.
Since assuming his new post, Hamli introduced major changes in the company, most notably, appointing his and Nameer’s loyalists. This will allow Hamli and Nameer to spend billions of rials to carry out false projects and purchase non-existent equipment, the sources told Asharq Al-Awsat.
Ahmed Hamed al-Moueen, a member of Mshat’s bureau, is supervising Nameer and Hamli’s work, allowing Mshat to reap vast sums of looted funds from the telecommunications sector.
Mshat also made similar appointments in the taxation and customs sectors, replacing employees who are loyal to Mohammed Ali and Abdulkarim al-Houthi with his allies.
The sources predicted that this fierce rivalry among the militia leaderships will ultimately lead to an armed clash.
