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| Hashid حاشد | |
|---|---|
| Hamdanite Qahtanite | |
 Sadiq al-Aḥmar, former Sheikh of all sheikhs of Hashid | |
| Ethnicity | Arab |
| Nisba | Al-Hāshidi |
| Location | Yemen |
| Descended from | Jashim ibn Jubran ibn Nawf ibn Tuba'a ibn Zayd ibn Amr ibn Hamdan |
| Parent tribe | Banu Hamdan |
| Branches |
|
| Language | Arabic |
| Religion | Islam |
The Hashid (Arabic: حاشد; Musnad: 𐩢𐩦𐩵𐩣) is a tribal confederation in Yemen. It is the second or third largest – after Bakil and, depending on sources, Madh'hij[1][2] – yet generally recognized as the strongest and most influential.[1][3] According to medieval Yemeni genealogies, Hashid and Bakil were the sons of Jashim bin Jubran bin Nawf Bin Tuba'a bin Zayd bin Amr bin Hamdan. Member tribes of the Hashid Confederation are found primarily in the mountains in the North and Northwest of the country.[4]
In recent times, Hashid confederation had for decades been led by the powerful Abushawareb clan. The clan's influence was built on an alliance with the former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who relied on a coalition with the most prominent leader of the Hashid tribal confederation, Sheikh Abdullah ibn Husayn al-Ahmar, to take power in 1978.[2] Until his death on 29 December 2007, Sheikh Abdullah served as the Speaker of Parliament and was considered Yemen's second most powerful person after President Saleh (who, along with many others in the government, also is a member of a Hashid tribe).[5]
After Sheikh Abdullah's death, his son Sadiq inherited the leadership of the confederation, with other sons Hamid al-Ahmar, a prominent businessman and Yemeni opposition leader in the Muslim Brotherhood, and Himyar Al Ahmar, the former deputy speaker of parliament – becoming influential members.[2][1] With the beginning of the Arab Spring, this new tribal leadership sided with the protesters and launched a Hashid insurgency, which played an essential role in the revolution against President Ali Abdullah Saleh in May 2011, culminating in the Battle of Sana'a and mass protests that eventually forced President Saleh to step down in February 2012 after 33 years in power.[6] However, the resulting rift between the al-Ahmar clan and Saleh - who retained loyalty of some Hashid tribes - led to the divisions within the Hashid confederation. This, along with the suspension of financial support by Saudi Arabia over al-Ahmar's continued alliance with the Muslim Brotherhood, had contributed to their defeat in the ensuing conflict with the Houthis[2] and led to the subsequent loss of Hashid leadership as many tribes (Bani Suraim, Usaimat, Uzer, etc.) reached a peace agreement or sided with the rebels.[6]
- ^ a b c "Yemen's tribal confederations", The National by Hugh Naylor, 27 February 2012
- ^ a b c d "Houthi armed groups challenge Yemen power structure", Al-Monitor, 30 April 2014.
- ^ Popular Protest in North African and the Middle East(II): Yemen Between Reform and Revolution
- ^ Paul Dresch, A History of Modern Yemen (Cambridge University Press, 2000)
- ^ "Mourning begins for Yemen speaker", BBC News, 29 December 2007.
- ^ a b "Al-Ahmar clan loses leadership of Hashid in ceasefire deal with Huthis" Archived 2014-05-12 at the Wayback Machine, Middle East Online, 4 February 2014.