Former Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Selah, who directed his nation with an iron fist and abject brutality for 33-years before being forced from office amid intense international pressure, ultimately took a wrong turn when he double-crossed the Iranian-backed Islamist rebels known as the Houthis. In an exclusive report, [see https://themedialine.org/news/ex-yemeni-leader-saleh-assassinated-home/ [1] ], a member of Selah’s inner security detail told The Media Line from hiding that although Selah’s death was made to appear as though the former president was apprehended while running for his life, in fact a Houthi hit-team dressed in the uniforms of his security personnel entered his home, shot Selah to death and took the body via pickup truck to make it appear as though he was fleeing “like a coward” and caught. Since he was forced from office and Yemen began the process of democratization, Selah was collaborating with forces opposing the internationally-recognized government of President Abd Rabbo Monsour Hadi, including the Houthis. The rebels swept down from the mountains and overran the capital Sana’a and much of the rest of the country, forcing Hadi to flee to Saudi Arabia. In 2015, the Saudis began a relentless bombing campaign against the rebels including the Houthis. While the Saudi initiative did not result in restoring Hadi, it brought the situation to an equilibrium. Unexpectedly, Selah addressed the nation several days ago and urged the Yemeni people to accept a deal offered by the Saudis to end the conflict. The sudden about-face from collaborator to endorser of the enemy signaled the end of Selah for the Houthis.
See The Media Line’s exclusive op-ed written by the Yemeni Minister of Information at: https://themedialine.org/news/lost-freedom-expression-yemen/ [2]