Sanaa (South24 Center)

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The Houthis on Saturday (August 30) officially announced the death of their unrecognized Prime Minister, Ahmed Ghaleb Al-Rahwi, along with several ministers, in an Israeli airstrike that targeted a meeting in Sanaa on Thursday (Aug 28).  

Local sources in Sanaa had earlier confirmed to ‘South24’ on Thursday afternoon that Al-Rahwi was killed in the strike.  

In a statement broadcast on ’Yemen TV’, controlled by the group in Sanaa, the Houthis said: “We announce the martyrdom of the mujahid Ahmed Ghaleb Al-Rahwi, Prime Minister of the Government of Change and Construction, together with a number of his fellow ministers, after they were treacherously targeted by the criminal Israeli enemy during a routine workshop to evaluate the government’s activity and performance over the past year.”  

The statement added that several others sustained moderate to severe injuries and were receiving medical treatment. The Houthis did not disclose the names of the other ministers killed or wounded in the attack, while their media outlets limited the coverage to praising Al-Rahwi’s record.   

Journalistic sources in Sanaa told ‘South24’ that Deputy Foreign Minister in the Houthi government, Abdul Majeed Al-Murtada, was also killed in the strike. 

Pro-Houthi sources and Yemeni media outlets reported that the ministers killed in the Israeli air raids included foreign minister Jamal Amer, information minister Hisham Sharaf Al-Din, justice minister Mujahid Abdullah, sports minister Mohammed Al-Mawlid, culture minister Ali Jarallah, deputy prime minister for defense and security Affairs, Jalal Al-Rowaishan, and electricity minister Ali Hassan.

Press sources said that Jalal al-Ruwaishan was wounded in the airstrikes but not killed. Other sources said that the Houthi ministers of Transport and Economy were also among the injured.

The reports could not be independently verified, and the Houthis have not yet released an official list of casualties.

In a statement carried by the Houthi-run Saba News Agency, the group announced that head of its political bureau, Mahdi Al-Mashat, has appointed Mohammed Ahmed Ahmed Muftah, First Deputy Prime Minister, to serve as Acting Prime Minister.  

Sources told ‘South24’ that the Houthis have imposed tight security measures around the military hospital in Sanaa, where some injured officials are being treated.   

The Israeli army said on Friday that its Thursday strikes were aimed at assassinating the Houthis’ Chief of Staff, Mohammed Al-Ghamari, and Defense Minister Mohammed Al-Atifi, based on intelligence information.  

The Houthis added in their statement that “the government, with God’s help, will continue to carry out its duties in a caretaker capacity, and state institutions will keep providing services to the people.” The group also reaffirmed its stance of support to Gaza.  

Ahmed Al-Rahwi was a politician from Abyan governorate in South Yemen, residing in Sanaa. The Houthis appointed him as Prime Minister of their government on August 10, 2024. The group has often chosen loyalists from South Yemen living in Sanaa to head its cabinets, in an effort to project inclusiveness and political openness, though critics argue these figures are granted no real decision-making powers.  

Recently, the Houthis arrested a number of leaders from the General People’s Congress (GPC) party, which is allied with them in Sanaa, and issued a death sentence against its head, Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh, son of Yemen’s late president. It is noteworthy that before Al-Rahwi’s appointment, the Houthi government was headed by Abdulaziz bin Habtour, who hails from Shabwa governorate in the South.