Tribal conflicts are escalating in Yemen's northern provinces of Amran and Sana'a, exacerbated by renewed feuds and old grievances actively inflamed by Houthi militia leadership. These actions are part of a deliberate strategy by the militia to weaken tribal structures and engage them in internal disputes, thereby consolidating their control and ensuring easier subjugation of the tribes. In Amran province, violent clashes erupted between the Dhu Sadam tribe (part of the Sufyan confederation) and the Dhu Khairan tribe (part of the Al-Asimat confederation) along their shared border. Local sources reported that the confrontations resulted in the death of Sheikh Mohammed Muslih Ali Makfah of the Dhu Sadam tribe and injuries to two individuals from the Dhu Khairan tribe. Sources confirmed that long-standing border disputes were recently reignited with direct incitement from Houthi leaders aiming to sow discord between these prominent tribes within the Hashid and Bakil confederations. Meanwhile, in the Arhab district north of Sana'a, tribes from the Zandan and Al-Khamis areas have rallied to take a firm stance against a tribal call to arms initiated by Houthi leader Fares Al-Habari. Al-Habari claims ancestral ownership of lands and wells in the Shar'a region, which falls under Zandan territory. During an expanded tribal meeting, the Zandan and Al-Khamis tribes refuted Al-Habari's claims, noting his affiliation with the Dhiban area, located over 50 kilometers from Shar'a. They asserted that his current actions constitute an attempt to seize citizens' property under the guise of Houthi authority. Sheikh Abdul Jalil Abdul Wahab Sinan accused Al-Habari of disruption and encroachment on local properties, leveraging his influence within the Houthi militia. He likened these actions to past practices of Al-Habari's ancestors, vowing strong tribal resistance. These recent movements by Al-Habari are reopening historical disputes, including a long-standing land conflict between the Al-Habari family and their tribes, and the inhabitants of Beit Al-Nak'i, Shar'a, and Sheikh Abdul Wahab Sinan and his tribes. A second, decades-old bloody conflict between factions within the Shar'a area, notably the Al-Zubairi and Al-Nak'i families, is also being revived. This feud saw its latest violent chapter years ago with a double homicide in front of the Ministry of Interior in Sana'a, with accusations directed at Sheikh Mujahid Al-Habari. Following that incident, armed groups from the Bani Zuhair clans, including Zandan, Al-Khamis, and Beit Al-Nak'i, launched a widespread attack on the homes and properties of Sheikh Ahmed Hamid Al-Habari in Shar'a, looting possessions and burning structures in retaliation for the deaths of Al-Nak'i members. Despite the Yemeni state establishing an official committee after unification that successfully resolved this protracted conflict through judicial and tribal rulings, with the state covering full compensation to close the chapter of revenge, the recent Houthi activities threaten to dismantle this societal stability and revert the situation to its previous volatile state. Observers have warned that the Houthi leadership's incitement and revival of old tribal conflicts in areas surrounding Sana'a, Amran, Al-Jawf, and Dhamar represent a ticking time bomb that could shatter the remaining social peace. They emphasize that this policy could have catastrophic repercussions for Yemeni tribes. The militia, they note, is attempting to dismantle the social and tribal fabric by unearthing files of revenge and border disputes between tribes, whose resolutions and conflicts were settled decades ago. This strategy perpetuates tribal animosities, transforming neighboring villages and areas into open battlefronts that undermine coexistence and stability for years to come. The militia relies on a strategy of occupation and exhaustion against tribal components, aiming to engulf major tribes like Hashid, Bakil, and Madhhaj in a protracted internal and inter-tribal war that depletes their human and material resources, thereby preventing them from forming any unified alliance or front that could pose a future threat to the Houthi militia. |
