Dance on the moving sand: Yemen’s MB getting closer to Houthis
Wednesday 06/February/2019 - 02:36 PM
Ali Rajab
A clear state of rapprochement between the Yemeni Islah Party and the Al-Houthi
militia is taking place, representing the pragmatic policy followed by the
Muslim Brotherhood in general and the Brotherhood of Yemen in particular. The
Islah Party wears more than one mask, in dealing with the conflict going on
between the legitimate Yemeni Forces and the Arab Coalition in one hand and the
Al-Houthi militia, supported by Iran and Qatar, on the other.
Real and certain communication
The Brotherhood's collaboration with the Houthis is no secret. The statements
of leaders of the Houthi militia revealed in more than one occasion that there
are ties or "bridges of communication and open channels" with the
Islah Party, which is confirmed by the calmness of the Brotherhood-led fronts
in Marib and Taiz.
A blog post on the social networking site Twitter by Houthi's politburo member
Mohammed al-Bekhiti revealed the nature of the relationship between Houthi and
Islah Party.
"Our cause and the cause of the Muslim Brotherhood is the same and the
challenges facing us are big and the same and we are supposed to be on the same
page," Bakheeti said in his blog.
Mohammed Abdul Qaddous, an official of the Houthi-controlled Saba agency in
Sana'a, also welcomed the rapprochement with the Yemeni Ishlah Party. He said:
"We welcome any rapprochement with Islah Party.” He praised the cadres of
the group and praised its stand by the Houthis.
Brotherhood betrayal of the government of Yemen
Commenting on al-Bakhti's comments and
his call to the Islah Party, the prominent Saudi political analyst Munther
al-Sheikh Mubarak commented: "You do not need to say that. We say the
Brotherhood and the Safavids are two sides of one coin."
"But the fools are manipulated by the slanderers of the Awakening
advocates to help the Muslim Brotherhood wear the dress of honor," he
said. "Sometimes they cheat the nation and promote a lie of Sunni alliance
with those who like Iran in the region like Turkey and Qatar."
Observers expressed their fear of betrayal by the brothers of the legitimate
government and the coalition forces in Taiz, in light of the association
between the Muslim Brotherhood and the Houthi militia, and the Turkish-Iranian
Qatari role to impose good relations between Houthis and the Muslim
Brotherhood, so that the alliance of the "evil forces" would seize
Yemen through Houthi and the Brotherhood.
In November 2015, the Brotherhood's reformist militia handed over el-Shareja,
south of the city of Taiz to al-Houthi militia. This was repeated in October
2017. The Muslim Brotherhood militia in Taiz handed over Jabal Han, the only
link between Taiz and Aden, to the Houthi militia.
Yemeni military sources also accused the Muslim Brotherhood in Yemen of handing
over the town of Sarawah in the eastern province of Marib to the Houthi
militia, which led to a military mobilization by the Yemeni army and the
Coalition to restore Sarawah.
For his part, Nizar Haitham, leader of the Yemeni Transitional Council, said:
"There is a hidden alliance between the Brotherhood and Houthi, and the
situation on the ground indicates that. The Houthis and the Brotherhood have
the same goal which is to control Yemen and to end the forces that pose a
threat to their plan.”
In a statement to the Reference, Haitham said that all the evidence confirms
the existence of coordination between the Brotherhood and the Houthis, and that
the reformist militia in Yemen serves the Iranian country plan in Yemen.
