As alliances shift after the assassination of former Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, the Saudi-led coalition (especially the United Arab Emirates) is suddenly finding itself on friendlier terms with its old Yemeni adversary, Islah. An Islamist party with ties to the Muslim Brotherhood, Islah is headed by Mohammed al Yidumi and its members were once hunted by Emirati Security Belt allies in southern Yemen. In a dramatic turn of fortunes, Yidumi met Dec. 13 with Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman and emerged from the meeting with hopeful statements about brotherhood and cooperation. Meanwhile, Emirati Minister of State Affairs Anwar Qarqash tweeted that Islah had broken all ties with Emirati archrival the Muslim Brotherhood. 

The amicable statements are an about-face, driven by battlefield pragmatism. The Saudi-led coalition wants to act quickly and swiftly against Houthi rebels, who have been weakened by defections following Saleh's murder, allegedly at the hands of Houthi fighters. But stiff opposition has caused southern resistance forces allied with the Saudi-led coalition to stall their drive toward the strategically vital port of al-Hudaydah on Yemen's west coast. It's the last port held by Houthi rebels, who rely on it to obtain supplies from Iran, and seizing it would go a long way toward incapacitating the Houthi movement.

Islah, which finished second in the last Yemeni parliamentary elections in 2003, could be the Saudi-led coalition's best weapon against the Houthis. The coalition has recently made gains against the Houthis in Shabwa province, where fighting had stalled, but it fully recognizes that it needs utilitarian allies if it hopes to intensify its offensive against the Houthis. Islah and its supporters may very well be one of those allies.