Supreme Political Council

The Supreme Political Council (SPC; ) is an extraconstitutional collective head of state and rival executive established in 2016 in Sanaa by the Houthis and the pro-Houthi faction of the General People's Congress (GPC) to rule Yemen opposed to the Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) in Aden. The SPC carries out the functions of head of state in Yemen, appointing the country's cabinet and managing the Yemen's state affairs in a bid to fill in political vacuum during the Yemeni Civil War. The Council aims to outline a basis for running the country and managing state affairs on the basis of the constitution. Since 2018, the SPC has been headed by Mahdi al-Mashat as Chairman of the Council.

The SPC was formed on 28 July 2016 with an initial ten members and was headed by Saleh Ali al-Sammad as president and Qassem Labozah as vice-president. The members were sworn in on 14 August 2016, and the next day the Supreme Revolutionary Committee (SRC) handed power to the Supreme Political Council. After al-Sammad was killed in a drone strike on 19 April 2018, chairmanship of the SPC passed to Mahdi al-Mashat. Under the SPC is subordinate the Cabinet of Yemen, which it appoints and supervises government officials who oversee relevant ministries; since 2016 two governments have been established under the council. In 2016 the SPC appointed former Aden governor Abdel-Aziz bin Habtour to form a ministry known as the National Salvation Government (NSG). In September 2023 the NSG was dismissed and replaced by a caretaker administration which continued to be headed by Habtour. In August 2024 a Presidential resolution appointed Ahmad al-Rahawi as the head of a new ministry known as the 'Government of Change and Construction' (GCC). Eight days later the House of Representatives (in Sanaa) approved the cabinet and called for a 36-point 'general program'.

The SPC remains internationally unrecognized compared to the PLC in Aden and is acknowledged only by Iran, with the Houthis placing an ambassador to Iran in August 2019. The formation of the SPC has been condemned by the international community; with the United Nations (UN) officially describing the act as "a clear violation of the Yemeni constitution" and denounced the council for sabotaging the Yemeni peace process.

Background

In the wake of president Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi and prime minister Khaled Bahah resignations over Houthi rebels takeover of presidential palace in January 2015, Houthi leader Abdul Malik Al Houthi reportedly proposed a six-member "transitional presidential council" which would have equal representation from north and south, although this proposal was rejected by the Southern Movement. Nevertheless, on 1 February, the Houthis gave an ultimatum to Yemen's political factions warning that if they did not reach a solution to the current political crisis, then the Houthi "revolutionary leadership" would assume formal authority over the state. According to Reuters, political factions have agreed to form an interim presidential council to manage the country for up to one year. Former South Yemen president Ali Nasser Mohammed was originally being considered as a prospective interim leader, but Mohammed later declined the post.

On 6 February 2015, the Houthis formally assumed over authority in Sanaa, declaring the dissolution of House of Representatives and announced that a "presidential council" would be formed to lead Yemen for two years, while a "revolutionary committee" would be put in charge of forming a new, 551-member national council. This governance plan was later affirmed by Houthi Ansarullah politburo leader Saleh Ali al-Sammad as he said that national council would choose a five-member presidential council to govern the country.

Current members

The Ministry of Foreign Affairs lists the following members of the SPC:

Cabinets

Government of Change and Construction (2024–present)

On 10 August 2024, Ahmed al-Rahawi was appointed as Prime Minister of Yemen and tasked with forming a ministry known as the 'Government of Change and Construction' by the President of the Supreme Political Council Mahdi al-Mashat. Two days later the composition of the new government was announced in a presidential resolution. On August 18, 2024 the House of Representatives (San'aa) gave confidence to the government and called on it to follow a 36-point 'general program' prepared by a house of representatives special committee. The government and SPC continues to be internationally unrecognised in comparison with the Presidential Leadership Council (PLC).

National Salvation Government (2016–2023)

On 2 October 2016, Abdel-Aziz bin Habtour was appointed as prime minister by the Houthis. On 4 October, he formed his cabinet. The cabinet was composed of members of the Southern Movement. However, the cabinet is not internationally recognized.

On 28 November 2016, a new cabinet was formed. It is only composed by members of pro-Saleh GPC and the Ansarullah Movement.

However, the UN Special Envoy for Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed said the move was "a new and unnecessary obstacle. Yemen is at a critical juncture. The actions recently taken by Ansarullah and the General People's Congress will only complicate the search for a peaceful solution. The parties must hold Yemen’s national interests above narrow partisan ambitions and take immediate steps to end political divisions and address the country’s security, humanitarian and economic challenges." He further claimed that such an action could harm peace talks.

On 27 October 2020, the Minister of Youth and Sport Hassan Mohammed Zaid was shot dead by unknown gunmen in the capital Sanaa.

On 27 September 2023 the National Salvation Government was dismissed and replaced by a caretaker government, Habtour continued as caretaker prime minister before being elevated to the SPC in 2024.

Diplomatic relations with other states

The Supreme Political Council currently only has diplomatic relations with Iran. Relations with Ba'athist Syria existed between 2015 and 2023. Additionally, the government has diplomatic contacts with Russia, Abkhazia and North Korea. In 2015, ''The Wall Street Journal'' reported that the government would seek contacts with China, Iran and Russia. In 2016, a National Salvation government official had invited several North Korean diplomats to Damascus. The same year, a delegation of the National Salvation government visited Russia and met the Russian Deputy Minister of Foreign Affairs. In 2017, Foreign Minister Hisham Sharaf Abdullah met with the chargés d’affaires of the Russian and the Syrian Embassy in Sanaa. In August 2019, the National Salvation government appointed an Ambassador to Tehran. In early 2020, the Saba News Agency reported that Hisham Sharaf Abdullah called China a "friendly government". In October 2020, Iran appointed Hasan Irlu as its ambassador to Sanaa. Two months later, the United States sanctioned the Iranian Ambassador to Sanaa. In August 2020, the National Salvation government appointed an Ambassador to Damascus. In March 2021, the National Salvation government appointed Ambassador in Damascus met with the Abkhaz Ambassador to Syria. In October 2023, Syria expelled representatives of the National Salvation government from the Yemeni embassy in Damascus.

The President, the Parliament Speaker and the Foreign Minister of the National Salvation government have sent numerous diplomatic notes to a wide range of countries such as Algeria, Bahamas,
Comoros, Kiribati, Malawi, Malta, Mongolia, Montenegro, Slovenia, South Sudan, Venezuela and Uzbekistan.

See also

* Supreme Revolutionary Committee
* Rival government

References

{{Yemeni Civil War (2015)

Houthis
Politics of Yemen
Yemeni crisis
Axis of Resistance
Anti-Israeli sentiment in Yemen