Aftermath of the Houthi takeover in Yemen
After seizing the capital in September 2014, the Houthis (Ansar Allah) obtained the resignations of President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, Prime Minister Khaled Bahah, and the cabinet in January 2015 and then moved to dissolve parliament and instate a Revolutionary Committee to govern Yemen on 6 February 2015.
[1][2] However, despite their military successes and an alleged alliance with the former ruling General People's Congress,[3][4] the Houthis faced widespread domestic and international opposition to the coup and they assented to United Nations–led talks on a power-sharing deal.
In September 2014, the protests gave way to full-blown fighting between Houthi militants and army forces loyal to General Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar in the capital city of Sana'a.
[15] In addition to rolling back the fuel subsidy cuts, they also obtained the resignation of Prime Minister Mohammed Basindawa and significant control over the formation of a new "unity government" and constitution-drafting process.
[16][17] In January 2015, Houthi forces assaulted the presidential palace and private residence of Hadi, placing the president and his ministers under virtual house arrest while demanding further concessions.
[18] Three weeks later, on 6 February, the Houthis declared the House of Representatives defunct and named a Revolutionary Committee led by Mohammed Ali al-Houthi as the acting authority in Yemen.
[22] On 16 February, former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh's General People's Congress (GPC) said it would accept the Houthi decree dissolving parliament.
[30] The leaders of the Aden, Lahij, and Mahrah governorates declared a joint "administrative, security, and political leadership" opposing the Houthi takeover.
[23] It was not immediately clear whether he evaded house arrest or was allowed to leave for the first time in a month,[32][33] with some reports indicating that he escaped—in one telling, he disguised himself as a woman and stowed away on a food truck,[33] while in another, he was freed by special forces—and others suggesting he was released as part of an agreement between the Houthis and other factions.
[10] In his speech, Hadi called for a resumption of the National Dialogue Conference in either Aden or Taiz, cities outside the Houthis' zone of control[broken anchor].
[29] Hadi was soon joined by Defence Minister Mahmoud al-Subaihi, who abandoned his position as chairman of the Houthi-imposed Supreme Security Committee and decamped from Sana'a.
[39] On 21 March, he also officially declared Aden to be Yemen's "economic and temporary capital" due to the Houthi occupation of Sana'a, which he pledged would be retaken.
[40] There were clashes in Rada'a leaving nine dead on 10 February after Houthi fighters attempted to take control of the city and encountered local resistance.
[42] The jihadist group Ansar al-Sharia also took advantage of the power vacuum, capturing a military base in the Shabwah Governorate of southern Yemen.
[46] AQAP seized the Al Hawtah District on 20 March, again just for a single day, but 29 soldiers were left dead in a mass killing while the city was under jihadist control.
Two days later, the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant claimed responsibility for four suicide attacks against Shia mosques with primarily Houthi congregations in Sana'a.
[28] A similar demonstration was held on 13 March, after pro-Saleh vehicles with loudspeakers reportedly broadcast messages throughout Sana'a urging residents to come out in support of Ahmed Saleh for the preceding two days.
[4][62][63][64][65] The United Nations Security Council unanimously adopted a resolution deploring the Houthi takeover and demanding that the group relinquish control of the government on 15 February 2015, although it stopped short of authorising military force.
[6] The GCC warned that if the UN did not act forcefully, its members would "take measures which enable them to maintain their vital interests in the security and stability of Yemen".
[71] The government of Iran praised the Houthi uprising as an extension of the Iranian Revolution, with President Hassan Rouhani stating that the Islamic Republic was supporting "peace and stability" in Yemen.
[72][73] On 28 February, Houthi-controlled state media announced that Iran and Yemen signed an agreement to open direct flight routes between the two countries.
[69] The following month, a Houthi spokesperson said the group had secured pledges from Iran to provide oil to Yemen, expand its ports, and construct power plants in the country.
[74] After Riad Yassin, Hadi's foreign minister, called on the Gulf Cooperation Council to assist the beleaguered government in Aden,[75] Saudi Arabia began a military buildup on its border with Yemen in late March 2015, according to US intelligence.
[94] Egypt, Jordan, Morocco, and Sudan also joined the campaign, with Egyptian naval ships moving to block the Bab-el-Mandeb strait,[95][96] and the United States declared it would provide intelligence and logistical support.
