Top Houthi commander declared dead—months after Israeli strike

The Iranian-backed Houthi movement has officially confirmed the death of its Chief of General Staff, Muhammad Abdul Karim al-Ghamari, marking a significant blow to the group’s military leadership. The announcement comes nearly two months after a targeted Israeli airstrike in the Yemeni capital, Sanaa, which also claimed the lives of Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi and reportedly Defence Minister Mohamed al-Atifi.

Al-Ghamari was killed during a precision Israeli airstrike on August 28, which struck a high-level meeting of Houthi leadership. While the group initially acknowledged the death of al-Rahawi and admitted to the severity of the attack, it had deliberately withheld confirmation regarding al-Ghamari’s status, Caliber.Az reports, citing foreign media.

“The Iranian-backed Houthi terrorist movement has finally confirmed the death of its Chief of Staff, Muhammad Abdul Karim al-Ghamari, a significant blow to the terrorist group’s military command structure,” reports state. “Al-Ghamari was killed during a targeted Israeli airstrike on the capital, Sanaa, in late August, an attack the Houthis had initially sought to downplay.”

The delayed confirmation aligns with Israeli assessments that the August strike successfully targeted key elements of the Houthi military and political hierarchy. “The confirmation comes nearly two months after the Israeli Air Force (IAF) conducted a major strike on August 28, targeting a high-level meeting of Houthi leaders. Israel’s objective was to eliminate key military and political figures, including the then-Prime Minister Ahmed al-Rahawi and Defence Minister Mohamed al-Atifi, alongside al-Ghamari.”

During the weeks following the airstrike, Houthi media reportedly attempted to conceal al-Ghamari’s death by releasing statements in his name, a tactic observers note is frequently employed by militant groups to obscure leadership losses and preserve an image of operational continuity.

“While the Houthis quickly confirmed the death of al-Rahawi and acknowledged the attack’s severity, the status of al-Ghamari and al-Atifi remained deliberately ambiguous,” the report adds. “Over the intervening weeks, Houthi media had reportedly attempted to mask al-Ghamari’s demise by issuing statements in his name, a tactic often used by terrorist military groups to obscure a leadership loss and maintain the perception of stability.”

The official admission now dispels lingering uncertainty and confirms the success of what Israeli officials described as an operation aimed at eliminating senior figures responsible for orchestrating Houthi missile and drone assaults on Israel and commercial vessels in the Red Sea.

By Vafa Guliyeva