Yemeni Military Court Sentences 174 Houthi Leaders to Death, Including Abdul-Malik al-Houthi

Armed members of the Houthi movement visit the grave of Houthi senior official Saleh al-Sammad at al-Sabeen Square in Sanaa, Yemen, on January 11, 2021. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
Armed members of the Houthi movement visit the grave of Houthi senior official Saleh al-Sammad at al-Sabeen Square in Sanaa, Yemen, on January 11, 2021. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
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Yemeni Military Court Sentences 174 Houthi Leaders to Death, Including Abdul-Malik al-Houthi

Armed members of the Houthi movement visit the grave of Houthi senior official Saleh al-Sammad at al-Sabeen Square in Sanaa, Yemen, on January 11, 2021. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah
Armed members of the Houthi movement visit the grave of Houthi senior official Saleh al-Sammad at al-Sabeen Square in Sanaa, Yemen, on January 11, 2021. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah

A military court affiliated with the internationally recognized Yemeni government on Wednesday sentenced the leader of the Houthi group, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, and 173 other Houthi leaders to death.

The sentence, issued by a martial court in the northeastern governorate of Marib, also included Iran’s Revolutionary Guards leader Hassan Eyrlou, who is currently serving as Tehran’s ambassador to the Houthi self-proclaimed government in Sanaa.

The court also decided to classify the “Houthi group” as a criminal terrorist organization, ban its activities, disband and confiscate all its property, and remove all weapons, ammunition, and military equipment from it and hand it over to the Ministry of Defense.”

According to the court ruling, those sentenced to death would be executed by a firing squad.

The court also confiscated their money for involvement in the military coup against the regime and the legitimate and constitutional authorities, collaborating with Iran, and committing military and war crimes.

More so, the court called on the official government to develop a national strategy to eliminate all discrimination between Yemenis on the grounds of race, sect, color, or origin.

The court further decided that Iran would be prosecuted before the International Criminal Justice for its involvement in the militia’s crimes.

In July, a court in Marib held the initial session of the trial of Houthi leaders accused of masterminding the coup against the internationally recognized government of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi in 2015 and the subsequent military campaign.

At the moment, Houthis are spearheading a new recruitment campaign among Sanaa tribes to replenish their ranks after having incurring heavy losses in battles in Marib.

During the past week, informed sources told Asharq Al-Awsat that the group’s leaders in the tribal and rural districts surrounding the Houthi-run capital, Sanaa, held several meetings with tribal leaders to urge additional recruitment.



Israel Keeps Up Gaza Bombardment as Ceasefire Talks Intensify

Smoke rises following an explosion in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Dec.18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Smoke rises following an explosion in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Dec.18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
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Israel Keeps Up Gaza Bombardment as Ceasefire Talks Intensify

Smoke rises following an explosion in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Dec.18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)
Smoke rises following an explosion in the Gaza Strip as seen from southern Israel, Wednesday, Dec.18, 2024. (AP Photo/Ohad Zwigenberg)

US and Arab mediators are working round-the-clock to hammer out a ceasefire deal between Israel and Hamas, sources close to the talks said, while in the Gaza Strip medics said Israeli strikes had killed 13 Palestinians on Thursday.
The mediators, at talks in Egypt and Qatar, seek to forge a deal to pause the 14-month-old war in the Hamas-ruled enclave that would include a release of hostages seized from Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, along with Palestinian prisoners held by Israel, Reuters said.
Mediators had managed to narrow some gaps on previous sticking points but differences remained, the sources said.
In Gaza, medics said at least 13 Palestinians were killed overnight in separate Israeli airstrikes, including on two houses in Gaza City and a central camp.
Residents of Jabalia in the northern Gaza Strip, where the army has operated since October, said forces blew up clusters of houses overnight.
"The longer those talks last, the more destruction and death takes place in Gaza. Jabalia, Beit Hanoun, and Beit Lahiya are being wiped out, Rafah too," said Adel, 60, a resident of Jabalia, who is now displaced in Gaza City.
Palestinians accuse Israel of ethnic cleansing in those areas by depopulating residents to create buffer zones. Israel denies this and says its campaign aims to wipe out Hamas, a militant group, and to prevent it from regrouping.
Israel accuses Hamas of exploiting civilian infrastructure and the population as a human shield for its activities. Hamas denies it and accuses Israel of trying to justify the indiscriminate killing of Palestinian civilians.
PHASED OR COMPREHENSIVE?
Sources close to the mediation efforts said Hamas had pushed for a one-package deal but Israel wanted a phased one. Talks are focused on a first-phase release of hostages, dead or alive, as well as a number of Palestinians jailed by Israel.
On Tuesday, the sides discussed the numbers and categories of those to be released, but things have yet to be finalized, said a source who spoke anonymously because of the sensitivity of the talks.
The source said one issue was Israel's demand to retain the right to act against any possible military threat from Gaza and the stationing of Israeli forces during phases of the deal.
Israeli Defense Minister Israel Katz said on Tuesday Israel will have security control over Gaza with full freedom of action after defeating Hamas in the enclave.
Israel launched its air and ground assault on Gaza after Hamas-led fighters attacked Israeli communities 14 months ago, killing 1,200 people and taking over 250 hostages back to Gaza, according to Israeli tallies.
Israel says about 100 hostages are still being held, but it is unclear how many are alive.
Israel's campaign has killed more than 45,000 Palestinians, displaced most of the 2.3 million population and reduced much of the coastal enclave to ruins.
On Thursday, Human Rights Watch said Israel had killed thousands of Palestinians in Gaza by denying them clean water which it says legally amounts to acts of genocide and extermination.
Israel's foreign ministry accused the rights group of lying, writing on X that Israel had facilitated the continuous flow of water and humanitarian aid into Gaza since the start of the war despite constant attacks by Hamas.