“Sana’a General People’s Congress” Freezes Its Activities in Houthi-Controlled Areas
Yemen Monitor / Sana’a / Exclusive:
The General Secretariat of the General People’s Congress (Sana’a) approved the freeze of its organizational activity on Thursday, due to violations by the armed Houthi group against the party in recent weeks—according to a senior party source who spoke to “Yemen Monitor.”
The source, who preferred not to be identified for fear of Houthi retaliation, stated that the party’s leadership held a meeting this week discussing pivotal issues related to the future of the Conference’s work amid the escalating “treason accusation” campaign and the ongoing violations by the Houthis for months.
The source indicated that the meeting discussed the 2019 decision by the Permanent Committee authorizing the leadership (the General Committee) to issue resolutions, and addressed “the issue of the detention of the Secretary-General of the General People’s Congress, Ahmed Ali Ghazi, and the repercussions of his arrest on the party’s organizational activity.”
According to the source, the meeting also addressed “the file of releasing the funds and properties seized from the Conference” by the Houthis.
On this basis, the party’s organizational work was frozen until the Houthis fulfill their obligations, release the detained party leaders, lift the house arrest imposed on some of its leaders, and return the funds and assets—including “movable assets”—to the party’s ownership.
He stated that the treason campaign led by the Houthis against the Congress Party, its leaders, and its members is “condemnable and can only be understood as aiming to eliminate the existing nominal partnership.”
“Yemen Monitor” was unable to reach the Houthi group for an immediate comment on the freeze of the Congress Party’s activity or the accusations against them.
This escalation comes amid increasing tension between the former allies of Sana’a. The Houthis had arrested the Secretary-General of the Congress, Ahmed Ali Ghazi, on August 20 last, as part of a widespread arrest campaign that targeted party cadres and continued until this October in most provinces under the movement’s control.
Ghazi’s arrest came one day after the party announced the cancellation of all celebratory events marking the 43rd anniversary of its founding, which fell on August 24, under pressure from the Houthis, who stated that celebrating the party’s founding was part of a “coup plot.” Ghazi had been opposed to canceling the celebrations.
The Houthi have leveled serious accusations against the General People’s Congress in Sana’a, most notably planning a “coup” against the group’s rule in cooperation with their opponents in the internationally recognized government and the family of the late President Ali Abdullah Saleh. This freeze decision represents the most serious indicator yet of the disintegration of the fragile alliance that has ruled Sana’a since the death of Saleh in 2017.
