From Criticism to Praise: Why Have Yemen’s Muslim Brotherhood Changed Their Stance on Ali Abdallah Saleh?

The stance of Yemen‘s Muslim Brotherhood, represented by their local branch, the Al-Islah Party, has undergone a dramatic shift regarding former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Once critical of him, holding him accountable for the current situation in the country and describing the events of the early past decade against his regime as the “Youth Revolution,” they now praise him, participating in commemorations of his assassination by the Houthi group, referring to him as a martyr, and describing his conflict with the group that led to his assassination as the “December 2, 2017 Uprising.”

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According to sources cited by the London-based Al-Arab newspaper, this change in position stems from a broader wave of reconciliations initiated by the Al-Islah Party with various components of Yemen’s legitimate government coalition. These sources state that the goal is to unite these components to confront the Houthi group, but under the leadership of Al-Islah this time.

As observed by Al-Arab, the party opened its main stronghold in Yemen, the city of Ma’rib, east of the capital Sana’a, to host a special celebration marking the seventh anniversary of Saleh’s death. The party’s media outlets covered the event with an unusually positive tone about Saleh, focusing on his virtues and qualities rather than the criticisms and accusations they had previously leveled against him.

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This shift in attitude towards the founder and leader of the General People’s Congress began with surprising statements by General Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar, a prominent figure in Al-Islah. On his account on the X platform (formerly Twitter), he commended the commemoration of the former president’s assassination, saying: “We express our appreciation for the organization of a special ceremony by the Political Bureau of the National Resistance in the western coast to commemorate the martyrdom of President Ali Abdullah Saleh during the December 2017 uprising, an event that united Yemenis around the necessity of preserving the republican system and resisting Houthi clericalism.”

He added: “This is what all Yemeni forces and components must agree on: the unity of purpose to liberate the country from the Iranian Wilayat al-Faqih system.”

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Al-Islah’s media, which covered the Ma’rib celebration, referred to Saleh as a “leader” and spoke of his “martyrdom” alongside that of his companion Aref al-Zouka, the General Secretary of the General People’s Congress, in their fight to defend the homeland and the republican system against Houthi militias.

The ceremony witnessed significant representation from Ma’rib’s local authority, led by prominent Al-Islah member Sultan al-Aradah, along with a large number of politicians and tribal leaders, according to the newspaper. Some participants highlighted Ma’rib’s symbolic role, calling it a “launching point for any national Yemeni project seeking to restore freedom and dignity.”

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