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Sarkha

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This article is about the political slogan. For the village in Iran, see Sarkha-ye Pain. Slogan of the Houthi movement

Sarkha
God is the Greatest
Death to America
Death to Israel
Curse be upon the Jews
Victory to Islam
UseOther Reverse side is congruent with obverse side
Adoptedc. 2003; 22 years ago (2003)
DesignVertical white banner with a green border and five Arabic statements from top to bottom in the centre: green text for pro-Islamic statements and red text for anti-American, anti-Israeli, and antisemitic statements.
Designed byHussein Badreddin al-Houthi

The Sarkha (Arabic: الصرخة, lit. 'The scream / The collective outcry') is the political slogan of the Houthi movement, a Shia Islamist political and military organization in Yemen, reads "God is the Greatest, Death to America, Death to Israel, Curse be upon the Jews, Victory to Islam" on a vertical banner of Arabic text. It is often printed on a white background, with the written text in red and green; the pro-Islamic statements are coloured green while the statements about their enemies, United States, Israel, and the Jews, appear in a red font resembling barbed wire.

Design and symbolism

Modeled on a motto from revolutionary Iran, the Houthi slogan, called the Sarkha, is: "Allah is the Greatest, Death to America, Death to Israel, A Curse Upon the Jews, Victory to Islam." The Sarkha was originally not tied to the Houthi movement. Its exact origin is disputed. The slogan was first chanted at the Imam al-Hadi school in Razih, Saada in January 2002, although it is claimed that Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi used it after seeing footage of the killing of young Palestinian Muhammad al-Durrah during the Second Intifada in 2000. Hussein al-Houthi noted during a sermon in January 2002 that he had included Jews in the slogan “because they are the ones who move this world".

A building in Dhamar, Yemen, bearing the Houthi slogan banner

The slogan eventually became a sign of public protest against the dictatorship of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh. It was first widely used during a visit by Saleh to Saada in January 2003. At the time, the President intended to make a speech during the Friday prayers, but was drowned out by locals who chanted the slogan to protest against his policies. The Yemeni government responded with a crackdown, and 600 people were arrested for having used the slogan. This only worsened the situation, and the slogan spread in northern Yemen.

History

The Houthi movement officially adopted the slogan in the wake of the widely condemned 2003 U.S. invasion of Iraq. This brought the movement on a collision course with the government, as the government maintained its official pro-American politics despite public opposition. The slogan was outlawed. The Houthis refused to discard it, arguing that the constitution of Yemen protected free speech. By 2004, crackdowns against both the slogan as well as the Houthi movement intensified. Many Houthis were imprisoned and even tortured for having used it. The conflict between the Houthis and the government eventually resulted in the outbreak of a violent insurgency in the northern part of the country.

Despite the religious overtones of their slogan, the Houthis self-identify as Yemeni nationalist group opposed to the oppression of all Yemenis, including Sunni Muslims, by foreigners. Though the slogan is the most prominent symbol of the Houthi movement, often displayed on placards and flags, the Houthis also display the regular flag of Yemen as a rallying symbol.

Protests in Sana'a, Yemen following the 2024 missile strikes

Houthi supporters state that their ire for the U.S. and Israel is directed toward the respective countries' governments. Ali al-Bukhayti, the spokesperson and official media face of the Houthis, rejected the literal interpretation of the slogan by stating in an interview: "We do not really want death to anyone. The slogan is simply against the interference of those governments ." In the Arabic Houthi-affiliated TV and radio stations they use religious connotations associated with jihad against Israel and the US.

On April 2016, during UN-brokered peace talks in Kuwait, Houthi representatives gave the United States a "sincere apology" for the "Death to America" slogan claiming that the slogan was used for "domestic consumption as a means to attract support in the streets and create a common cause between their supporters to keep them united."

During the Red Sea crisis, Houthi supporters waved the flag of Palestine every friday during anti-Gaza genocide and anti-western attacks on Yemendemonstrations, alongside the slogan and flag of Yemen. A new Houthi slogan appeared after the group's re-designation as a terrorist organisation: "America is the mother of terrorism" set on a red background.

See also

Notes

  1. Arabic: الله أكبر، الموت لأمريكا، الموت لإسرائيل، اللعنة علی اليهود، النصر للإسلام, romanized: Allāhu ʾakbar, al-mawt li-ʾAmrīkā, al-mawt li-ʾIsrāʾīl, al-laʿnah ʿalā 'l-Yahūd, an-naṣr li-l-ʾIslām

References

  1. Phillips, Sarah G. (11 February 2024). "'America is the mother of terrorism': why the Houthis' new slogan is important for understanding the Middle East". The Conversation. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  2. ShahidSaless, Shahir (30 March 2015). "Does Iran really control Yemen". Al-Monitor. Archived from the original on 13 February 2015. Despite some differences in their religious beliefs, when it comes to foreign policy, very little separates the Iranian Twelver Shiites from Houthis, who are Zaidi Shiites. The political narrative that Houthis have propagated is "Death to America, Death to Israel," which is modeled on revolutionary Iran's motto.
  3. ^ "Houthis apologise to US over use of 'Death to America' slogan | Middle East Eye". web.archive.org. 2 October 2024. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  4. McKernan, Bethan; correspondent, Bethan McKernan Middle East (21 November 2018). "Who are the Houthis and why are they fighting the Saudi coalition in Yemen?". The Guardian. ISSN 0261-3077. Retrieved 12 January 2025. The Houthis' slogan, known as the sarkha, or scream, is "God is great, death to America, death to Israel, curse on the Jews, victory to Islam." {{cite news}}: |last2= has generic name (help)
  5. ^ Winter, Lucas (2011). "Conflict in Yemen: Simple People, Complicated Circumstances". Middle East Policy. XVIII (1): 102–120. doi:10.1111/j.1475-4967.2011.00476.x.
  6. Center, Sana'a (5 June 2024). "Houthi Media: A Study in Ideological Warfare". Sana'a Center For Strategic Studies. Retrieved 12 January 2025. The Houthis claim that their slogan, known as al-sarkha (the collective outcry), was first voiced by Hussein al-Houthi in 2002 in tribal areas of north Yemen to "confront the American project in the most dangerous conditions that the umma has experienced."
  7. https://www.adl.org/resources/news/why-do-houthis-curse-jews
  8. Riedel, Bruce (18 December 2017). "Who are the Houthis, and why are we at war with them?". Brookings Institution. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
  9. Asher Orkaby (25 March 2015). "Houthi Who? A History of Unlikely Alliances in an Uncertain Yemen". Foreign Affairs. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
  10. Cameron Glenn (29 May 2018). "Who are Yemen's Houthis?". Wilson Center. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
  11. Rai, Manish (13 April 2018). "Iran Developing Houthis as its Long-Term Asset". International Policy Digest. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
  12. Ridgwell, Henry (4 September 2015). "Yemen Fighting Intensifies as Fears Grow of Sectarian Conflict". Voice of America. Retrieved 20 April 2019.
  13. "Photo Essay: Rise of the Houthis". Newsweek. 9 February 2015. Retrieved 27 March 2015.
  14. Taqi, Abdulelah (12 April 2015). "Houthi propaganda: following in Hizbullah's footsteps". The New Arab. Retrieved 15 October 2016.
  15. "Yemenis put aside their woes to unite for Gaza and Palestine". The New Arab. 19 October 2023.
  16. "Houthi-led pro-Palestine rallies sweep Yemen in solidarity with Gaza". www.aa.com.tr. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  17. "Photos: Yemenis rally for Houthis, Palestinians in Sanaa". Al Jazeera. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
  18. Phillips, Sarah G. (11 February 2024). "'America is the mother of terrorism': why the Houthis' new slogan is important for understanding the Middle East". The Conversation. Retrieved 12 January 2025.
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