"An approaching storm": Where have the senior Houthi officials in Sana'a disappeared to?
Arab reports indicate that hundreds of Houthi commanders and fighters have disappeared from the public eye amid tightened security in the Yemeni capital. Residents fear a regional escalation and warn of a confrontation that will take a heavy toll on the population.
Arab media outlets reported on Saturday that hundreds of senior Houthi officials, fighters, and supervisors have disappeared recently from the neighborhoods of the capital, Sana'a, in parallel with the tightening of security measures.
According to the reports, this development has sparked fear among the city's residents regarding an "approaching storm." However, at the same time, the Houthis continue to collect taxes at various levels. Residents in Sana'a believe there is an attempt to restrain the street as the prospect of a regional conflict increases. Yesterday, the British newspaper "The Guardian" reported that Saudi Arabia might be preparing for an attack against the organization.
Sources told the Saudi newspaper "Asharq Al-Awsat" that hundreds of senior Houthi officials, commanders, fighters, and supervisors have begun to disappear from the public eye. At the same time, only those performing direct tasks or managing institutions have remained. The sources added that even this group has begun to change their places of residence and reduce their movement in the streets and neighborhoods.
Against this backdrop, it was reported that the disappearance of hundreds of Houthi members has caused great concern among the population regarding a total conflict, in which they would pay a heavy price and lose what little remains of stability and sources of livelihood. Residents in Sana'a even compared the current atmosphere to that which prevailed during the Houthi takeover of the capital in the previous decade.
According to residents in Sana'a, they are anxious and fear events that will worsen their suffering, and believe that the terrorist organization is preparing for surprise actions. Furthermore, the residents said that the Houthis are accommodating them in various ways and promising to improve services for the public. On the other hand, the organization continues to recruit fighters through terror and inducements. In addition, arrests and surveillance operations against citizens have increased.
