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Mahdi al-Mashat
Mahdi al-Mashat
مهدي المشاط
Chairman of the Supreme Political Council of Yemen
	Incumbent
	Assumed office ; 25 April 2018; Disputed by Rashad al-Alimi; (Presidential Leadership Council)
Prime Minister	Abdel-Aziz bin Habtour; Ahmad al-Rahawi
Deputy	Qassem Labozah; Sadeq Amin Abu Rass
Preceded by	Saleh Ali al-Sammad
Personal details
Born	1986; Ould Nouar, Saada Governorate, North Yemen
Military service
Allegiance	Houthi movement
Rank	Field marshal
Battles/wars	Houthi insurgency in Yemen; Yemeni Civil War (2014–present)

Mahdi al-Mashat (Arabic: مهدي المشاط, romanized: Mahdī al-Mashāṭ; born 1986) is a Yemeni politician who has served as the chairman of the Supreme Political Council and a military leader from the Houthi movement.^[2]

Biography

He hails from the remote hamlet Ould Nouar in the Ḥaydan district, Saada Governorate, an area where many northern Yemeni separatists come from. Since youth, he has been acquainted with one of the leaders of the Houthi rebellion, Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, also a key figure in the Zaidi movement since 2004. They are allegedly related by marriage. From 2014 on, al-Mashat was the director of al-Houthis office, his spokesman and representative in peace talks with the United Nations, among other posts.^[3]^[4]^[5]

In November 2013, he participated in an attack on the town of Dammaj in Saada. From May 2016, he was a member of the Supreme Political Council and was considered a representative of the hawkish faction. He participated in talks with the Chinese authorities in September 2016.^[6]

On 19 April 2018, he became Chairman of the Supreme Political Council, after the assassination of Saleh Ali al-Sammad.^[5] He is considered chief of the separatist political authorities of northern Yemen, while al-Houthi is head of the movement.^[7]

In July 2021, the Supreme Political Council prolonged his tenure for three more terms.^[8] Concerning an UN brokered nationwide two month truce of mid-2022, the first since 2016, he declared not to object an extension, while criticizing its terms for "not being encouraging enough".^[9]

In April 2023, he promised to form a committee to investigate the Sanaa stampede.^[10] Also in April, he met with a Saudi Arabian delegation.^[11]^[12]^[13] These Omani mediated talks failed in July.^[14]^[15]

References

^ "Parliament elevates president al-Mashat to field marshal rank". 24 April 2019. Archived from the original on 27 April 2019.
^ "السيرة الذاتية للرئيس مهدي المشاط‎". سبأنت - وكالة سبأ. 3 September 2020.
^ Saddam.Alkamali. "مهدي المشاط... خليفة الصماد من "الصقور" والدائرة الضيقة للحوثي". www.alaraby.co.uk/ (in Arabic). Retrieved 22 December 2023.
^ "Top Houthi political leader killed in Saudi coalition air strike". Middle East Eye. 23 April 2018. Retrieved 26 April 2018.
^ ^a ^b "Key Houthi official killed in Yemen". BBC. 23 April 2018. Retrieved 6 October 2019.
^ "مهدي المشاط الواجهة السياسية الجديدة للحوثيين". BBC News عربي (in Arabic). Retrieved 22 December 2023.
^ "Countries YZ". rulers.org. Retrieved 22 December 2023.
^ "SPC extends President Al-Mashat's presidency for 3 new terms". SABA. 17 July 2021.
^ "Houthi top official says group not against extending truce in Yemen". Reuters. 22 May 2022. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
^ "85 Killed, Hundreds Injured In Stampede During Yemen Charity Event: Report". Agence France Press. Retrieved 20 April 2023.
^ "Saudi officials visit Yemen's capital for talks with rebels". AP News. 9 April 2023. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
^ "Krieg im Jemen – Der Rebellenführer, der den Saudis die Hand entgegenstreckt". Tages-Anzeiger (in German). 13 April 2023. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
^ Keilberth, Mirco (12 April 2023). "Mann der Geheimnisse: Huthi-Kommandeur Mahdi Al-Mashat im Jemen". Süddeutsche.de (in German). Retrieved 22 December 2023.
^ "Saudi, Omani envoys hold peace talks with Houthi leaders in Yemen". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 19 February 2024.
^ "Yemen's Houthi rebels announce breakdown of talks with Saudi Arabia". www.aa.com.tr. Retrieved 19 February 2024.

Political offices
Preceded by Saleh Ali al-Sammad	— DISPUTED — Chairman of the Supreme Political Council of Yemen 2018–present Disputed by Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi and Rashad al-Alimi (Presidential Leadership Council) Reason for dispute: Yemeni Civil War (2014–present)	Incumbent