Abdul-Malik Badr al-Din al-Houthi (born 22 May 1979) is a Yemeni politician and religious leader who is the second leader of the Houthis (Ansar Allah), an organization principally made up of Zaydi Shia Muslims, since 2004.
His late brother Hussein was the founder of the group, whose leadership he succeeded after the latter's death in battle. Abdul-Malik al-Houthi is the leading figure in the Yemeni civil war which started with the Houthi takeover in Yemen in the Saada Governorate in northern Yemen.
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Personal life
Al-Houthi was born in Saada Governorate, Yemen Arab Republic, into the Houthi tribe on 22 May 1979. He is a Zaydi Shia Muslim. His father, Badreddin al-Houthi, was a religious scholar of Yemen's minority Zaydi sect. Abdul-Malik is the youngest among his eight brothers. His older brother, Hussein, was politically active and a member of the parliament of Yemen, as well as being a prominent critic of the former President of Yemen, Ali Abdullah Saleh. Hussein founded the Houthi movement to promote Zaidi thought, "rise against the oppressors ruling Yemen", and to provide educational and social services. After Hussein was killed, Abdul-Malik succeeded him by taking control of the Houthi movement.
Political activity
Abdul-Malik al-Houthi criticized the Yemeni government for maintaining a status quo in the country, which he said had plunged people into poverty, and accused the government of marginalizing the Zaidi community. The Yemeni government of President Ali Abdullah Saleh accused al-Houthi's group of trying to reestablish the "clerical imamate", which al-Houthi denied.