From unifier to global pariah
March 21, 1942 The future Yemeni president was born to a North Yemen family linked to the powerful Hashid tribal confederation. At that time Yemen was divided into two countries
1962 Saleh joined the army and took part in the coup that replaces the Zaidi imamate with an Arab nationalist republic 1978 Following the assassination of president Ahmad Al Ghashmi, Saleh was elected president of North Yemen by a constituent assembly 1990 He successfully steered North Yemen to reunification with the communist south, becoming president of a unified Yemen
1994 Saleh crushed a secession bid in the south 2004-2010 The president fought northern Yemen’s Houthi rebels, who, like him, belonged to the Zaidi Shiite minority
2012 Saleh stepped down on February 27 after months of demonstrations against his 33-year rule, and after being injured in a June 2011 attack
2014 The now former president allied himself with his former enemies, the Houthis, who in September of that year seized the capital, Sanaa, before later advancing south and briefly capturing Aden. But the southern port city was quickly retaken by pro-government forces backed by a Saudi-led coalition, including the UAE
2017 The alliance between Saleh and the Houthis falls apart, with the rebels claiming on December 4 that the former president had been killed. This claim was quickly confirmed by Saleh’s own party, the General People’s Congress