Wave of anger after appointing of Shamsuddin Muhammad as Mufti

The Supreme Political Council of Houthi, in northern Yemen, decided, on Tuesday, to appoint one of the Shiites linked to the "Iranian dynasties" and received his education in Iran as Mufti of Yemen, leaving a reaction of anger, and a wave of anger and condemnation on the faces of Yemenis, the majority of whom belong to the Sunni community.

In the areas under the control of the Houthi group, the Yemenis received the news of the appointment of Shamsuddin Muhammad Sharafuddin, Mufti of Yemen and Chairman of the Sharī'ah Fatwa Committee, and other members of the Commission loyal to the Houthis, as the thunderbolt. Sharafuddin had previously known with his hostile attitudes toward some Sunni sects such as Al-Shafi'i and Hanbali and his claim to correct the Zaydis. Yemeni scholars accused him of sectarian incitement and working in favor of Iran.

Observers confirm that the link between Iran and Houthi group in Yemen is based on the religious and sectarian aspects rather than on the political interests. While Yemeni media revealed that Shamsuddin did not complete his education, and studied until the first grade of the preparatory stage, in reference to the lack of eligibility to the post, refusing to be the Mufti of the country.

The desicion issued by the President of the so-called Political Council of Houthis, Salih al-Samad, to appoint Shamsuddin as Yemeni Mufti, is a dismissal of the great scholar, Muhammad bin Ismail al-Omrani, the Mufti of Yemen years ago, who is respected by the Yemeni scholars and sheikhs of the Shafi'i and Zaidi sects.

The Sunni Shafi'i denomination represents 70% of the majority of the Yemeni population, and Zaidi constitute 20%, while the different minorities in Yemen constitute 10% of the total of the Jewish minority. For years, the Yemenite Scholars Association considered the Zaidi, one of the Shiite sects closest to the Sunni community.

The writer and diplomat Abdul Wahab al-Omrani said that the Houthi coupist political council had usurped power, commenting on the decision to appoint Shamsuddin as "the appointment of Hashemi Zaidi Ghawardi Mufti by Houthi's decision." The decision to appoint Shamsuddin caused widespread anger in the provinces controlled by Houthis, such as Taiz, Hodeidah, Ibb and other governorates, forcing the so-called political council to hold an emergency meeting on Thursday to discuss the status of the decision to withdraw.