Sana'a (South24 Center)

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Yemen's Houthi group has intensified its control over the General People's Congress (GPC) party in recent days through a widespread arrest campaign targeting its leadership in Sana'a, followed by a significant organizational move: the removal of Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh, son of the former Yemeni president, from his position as party vice president.

These rapid developments reflect an escalating effort to diminish the influence of the Saleh family within the party that was previously the Houthis' ally before their alliance collapsed in late 2017.

On August 19, the GPC's general committee in Sana'a announced the cancellation of the party's 43rd anniversary celebration, justifying the decision as solidarity with the Palestinians and Gaza residents.

However, just one day later, Houthi-affiliated security forces arrested the party's Secretary General, Ghazi Ahmed Ali Mohsen Al-Ahwal, as he returned from a party meeting. Party sources confirmed the arrest occurred suddenly and his detention location remains unknown.

The campaign extended beyond the Secretary General. Over subsequent days, the group expanded its operations to include more than 25 first and second-tier leaders, along with dozens of party members in Sana'a and other governorates, according to journalistic sources.

The Houthis also imposed strict restrictions on the movement of the party president in Sana'a, Sadeq Amin Abu Ras, and parliament speaker Yahya Al-Ra'i, raising concerns within the GPC that the remaining leadership might become merely a political facade, under tight leash.

On August 28, the party's general committee, chaired by Sadeq Amin Abu Ras, voted to remove Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh from his position as vice president. The committee's statement justified the move citing previous organizational decisions and internal reports against those seeking to "fragment the Congress."

This decision came just weeks after an in-absentia ruling by a Houthi-controlled military court in Sana'a sentenced Ahmed Ali to death and confiscation of assets on charges of "treason and collaboration with the enemy”.

Tensions between the Houthis and the Saleh family date back to December 4, 2017, when former president Ali Abdullah Saleh was killed in his Sana'a home following the collapse of his alliance with the group.

Since that time, the General People's Congress has split into multiple factions: a Houthi-aligned wing in Sana'a led by Abu Ras, another wing in Aden allied with the internationally recognized government, and a third wing aligned with the Saleh family receiving some external support.