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First, I would like to thank Michael for his critical response. As I said in the past, I appreciate his contributions which are always thoughtful. Furthermore, I usually agree with him. However, in this case, I think he is mistaken. In the following I want to briefly elaborate why I think so.
The resolution which he criticizes makes it clear that we are highly critical of the Houthi’s politics. However, it would be very wrong to consider them simply as a sectarian outfit which dominance relies primarily on force and terror. Neither are they simply stooges of Iran.
The Houthis are a long standing popular movement which exists since nearly two decades. They initially were limited to the Zaydi branch of Shia Islam. However this changed to an important degree in the last decade. The Houthis strongly supported the Arab Spring in Yemen in 2011.
More importantly to understand the situation since the beginning of the war is the fact that the Hadi government waged a series of neoliberal austerity attacks in autumn 2014. This provoked a wave of mass popular protests which transformed into an anti-government movement and lasted until spring. (here are some links: https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/africa-and-middle-east/yemen-uprising/, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/africa-and-middle-east/yemen-report-4-9-2014/) They occupied the capital city Sana’a for months. The Houthis supported this movement (clearly with their own agenda in mind) and utilized it to take power. As a result of this, the Saudi (and UAE) invaded the country in March 2015. (Here are some links: https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/africa-and-middle-east/yemen-under-attack/, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/africa-and-middle-east/video-report-from-yemen/, https://www.thecommunists.net/worldwide/africa-and-middle-east/saudi-aggression-vs-yemen/) So the Houthis coming to power was not a military coup or something similar but the result of a mass popular uprising against austerity measures and a reactionary government. (I hope comrades understand some security considerations but I want to algebraically note that the author of these lines does not limit his knowledge about these events on sources from the internet or books but also on sources from the ground. By the way: here is an article of Michael Pröbsting published by a Yemeni paper published in Sana’a: http://www.laamedia.com/news.aspx?newsnum=20560)
The Hadi government was overrun primarily because it had no popular support. The Houthis had and have so.
As Michael rightly says, the Houthis military alliance with Saleh was an arch-opportunistic maneuver. However, it is very mistaken to suggest that the strength of the Houthi was primarily because of Saleh’s military forces. Proof of my thesis is simply that when the Houthis broke with Saleh and finished him off, their forces have not been significantly weakened until today! How is this to be explained?!
And in general: the Houthis face, in addition to domestic opponents, Saudi-Arabia, UAE and their allies (which receive huge military support from the U.S., UK, etc.) Yes, the Houthis have the support of Iran but this has no significant military meaning since they are totally cut off. Sea and air control is completely in the Saudi’s hand. In the north is Saudi Arabia and the road to Oman is cut off by the pro-Saudi forces. So they are largely on their own but nevertheless they are successfully resisting since 4,5 years (and without any alliance with Saleh anymore). Again, how can this be explained if not by popular support?!
I should also add that the Houthis have a deliberate concept to build a broader support base (which they of course want to keep under control). Hence they reach out (with some success) to various other forces including non-Shia. For example, the Socialist Party (which has been the ruling Stalinist party of South Yemen) has split with one wing supporting Hadi and the other supporting the Houthis. The Houthis leave them some space (as long as they don’t challenge their hegemony).
The Houthis are viewed by many as the defender of Yemen’s independence because all other are virtually under control of Saudi Arabia or the UAE. The mass demonstrations of hundreds of thousands of people in Sana’a are not a result of coercion!
The issue of the Southern secessionists is a bit complicated. It is true that this movement has also long-term roots. However, I am not sure how much they currently play an independent role. They seem to me pretty much dominated by the UAE. But I don’t have sufficient information currently to make a definite judgment on this.
I don’t want to focus on this issue but I think indeed that the east of Syria is primarily controlled by the U.S. and the anti-Houthi part of Yemen by Saudi Arabia and UAE.
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