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Yemenis Challenge Houthis, Celebrate ‘September 26 Revolution’

Yemenis commemorate the 59th anniversary of the September 26 Revolution in Marib (AFP)
Yemenis commemorate the 59th anniversary of the September 26 Revolution in Marib (AFP)
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Yemenis Challenge Houthis, Celebrate ‘September 26 Revolution’

Yemenis commemorate the 59th anniversary of the September 26 Revolution in Marib (AFP)
Yemenis commemorate the 59th anniversary of the September 26 Revolution in Marib (AFP)

Yemenis living under the rule of Houthi militia have defied the Iran-backed group by marking the 59th anniversary of the September 26 Revolution with celebrations, fireworks, and chanting national anthems.

Houthis had previously banned marking the occasion, even in private and closed venues.

More so, Yemenis took to social media against the insurgency group and in celebration of the special day.

In the governorates of Sanaa, Ibb, and Dhamar, Yemenis commemorated the September 26 Revolution, which put an end to the Imamate regime in their country, and voiced their total rejection of the nationwide coup staged by Houthis and the destruction it had brought about in Yemen.

“We heard a lot of fireworks being launched in the capital tonight to mark the September 26 Revolution... It’s the greatest day in the history of Yemen,” Amjad, a local from the Houthi-run capital, Sanaa, told Asharq Al-Awsat.

“Despite the attempts to prevent, we gathered and celebrated and kindled the flame of the revolution,” Khaled, a local from Dhamar city, told Asharq Al-Awsat.

Shawqi, a resident of Houthi-controlled Ibb, confirmed citizens challenging coup authorities and marking the occasion on the rooftops of homes and denouncing the insurgency.

According to him, the September 26 Revolution celebrations were one of the largest social demonstrations against the Houthi militias.

Houthis had tried to cast a shadow over the day by forcing students and civil workers to attend a Houthi-styled celebration of the insurgency on September 16.

Yemenis in the US, Egypt, Jordan, Malaysia, and Turkey also celebrated the anniversary of toppling the Imamate regime and voiced their rejection of what Houthis were doing back home.

Additionally, Yemenis in liberated governorates and government-run areas witnessed celebrations as well.

Prominent government figures, including the governor of Marib, Sultan Al-Arada, and the chief of the General Staff, Lt. Gen. Saghir bin Aziz, participated in a torch-lighting ceremony to mark the day.

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Lebanon Security Source Says Hezbollah Official Targeted in Beirut Strike

Civil defense members work as Lebanese army soldiers stand guard at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's Basta neighbourhood, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, Lebanon November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
Civil defense members work as Lebanese army soldiers stand guard at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's Basta neighbourhood, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, Lebanon November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
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Lebanon Security Source Says Hezbollah Official Targeted in Beirut Strike

Civil defense members work as Lebanese army soldiers stand guard at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's Basta neighbourhood, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, Lebanon November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi
Civil defense members work as Lebanese army soldiers stand guard at the site of an Israeli strike in Beirut's Basta neighbourhood, amid the ongoing hostilities between Hezbollah and Israeli forces, Lebanon November 23, 2024. REUTERS/Adnan Abidi

A Lebanese security source said the target of a deadly Israeli airstrike on central Beirut early Saturday was a senior Hezbollah official, adding it was unclear whether he was killed.

"The Israeli strike on Basta targeted a leading Hezbollah figure," the security official told AFP without naming the figure, requesting anonymity to discuss sensitive matters.

The early morning airstrike has killed at least 15 people and injured 63, according to authorities, and had brought down an eight-storey building nearby, in the second such attack on the working-class neighbourhood of Basta in as many months.

"The strike was so strong it felt like the building was about to fall on our heads," said Samir, 60, who lives with his family in a building facing the one that was hit.

"It felt like they had targeted my house," he said, asking to be identified by only his first name because of security concerns.

There had been no evacuation warning issued by the Israeli military for the Basta area.

After the strike, Samir fled his home in the middle of the night with his wife and two children, aged 14 and just three.

On Saturday morning, dumbstruck residents watched as an excavator cleared the wreckage of the razed building and rescue efforts continued, with nearby buildings also damaged in the attack, AFP journalists reported.

The densely packed district has welcomed people displaced from traditional Hezbollah bastions in Lebanon's east, south and southern Beirut, after Israel intensified its air campaign on September 23, later sending in ground troops.

"We saw two dead people on the ground... The children started crying and their mother cried even more," Samir told AFP, reporting minor damage to his home.

Since last Sunday, four deadly Israeli strikes have hit central Beirut, including one that killed Hezbollah spokesman Mohammed Afif.

Residents across the city and its outskirts awoke at 0400 (0200 GMT) on Saturday to loud explosions and the smell of gunpowder in the air.

"It was the first time I've woken up screaming in terror," said Salah, a 35-year-old father of two who lives in the same street as the building that was targeted.

"Words can't express the fear that gripped me," he said.

Saturday's strikes were the second time the Basta district had been targeted since war broke out, after deadly twin strikes early in October hit the area and the Nweiri neighbourhood.

Last month's attacks killed 22 people and had targeted Hezbollah security chief Wafiq Safa, who made it out alive, a source close to the group told AFP.

Salah said his wife and children had been in the northern city of Tripoli, about 70 kilometres away (45 miles), but that he had to stay in the capital because of work.

His family had been due to return this weekend because their school reopens on Monday, but now he has decided against it following the attack.

"I miss them. Every day they ask me: 'Dad, when are we coming home?'" he said.

Lebanon's health ministry says that more than 3,650 people have been killed since October 2023, after Hezbollah initiated exchanges of fire with Israel in solidarity with its Iran-backed ally Hamas over the Gaza war.

However, most of the deaths in Lebanon have been since September this year.

Despite the trauma caused by Saturday's strike, Samir said he and his family had no choice but to return home.

"Where else would I go?" he asked.

"All my relatives and siblings have been displaced from Beirut's southern suburbs and from the south."