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Common enemy brings Iran, Saudi Arabia closer

Relations between Saudi Arabia and the Shiite movements in Yemen, namely the Houthis, have fluctuated over the years but may turn into a Saudi-Iranian rapprochement as a common enemy threatens both sides.
A policeman carries his weapon as he mans a checkpoint in Sanaa September 25, 2014. Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi has warned Yemenis their country is heading towards civil war after the takeover of the capital by Shi'ite Muslim rebels, a move that has allowed the insurgents to dictate terms to a weakened, fractured government. REUTERS/Khaled Abdullah (YEMEN - Tags: POLITICS CIVIL UNREST MILITARY CRIME LAW) - RTR47NQU

On Sept. 26, 1962, the Yemeni revolution rose to topple the Shiite Zaydi Imamate and installed a republican system of government in its stead. During the same time this year, Zaydi forces, known as Houthis, entered the Yemeni capital Sanaa, took control of key government institutions and declared the fall of the Sunni, Salafist and Muslim Brotherhood-oriented government.

The irony is that the political struggle that raged back then made Saudi Arabia an ally of the Shiite regime that ruled Yemen at the expense of the predominantly Sunni opposition, which was backed by Egypt. At that time, Saudi Arabia made military and economic efforts to keep the Yemeni Shiite monarchy in place, but it was finally ousted by supporters of the republican regime.

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