Ambassador Marwan Ali Noman
Former Deputy Permanent Representative to the United Nations
The September 26, 1962 Revolution was a defining moment in Yemen’s modern history and a decisive turning point in the life of its people. It transformed the nation from centuries of backwardness, oppression, poverty, disease, and clerical rule under the Imamate into an era of enlightenment, development, and equality—ushering Yemenis into the modern world alongside their Arab and international counterparts.
The first of the Revolution’s Six Goals explicitly addressed the entrenched social injustice and class despotism Yemen had endured under the Imams’ oppressive rule. It affirmed liberation from tyranny, despotism, and colonialism, the establishment of a just republican system, and the removal of class-based privileges and divisions.
From the very outset, Yemeni expatriates played a pivotal role as a vital pillar of support for the September 26 Revolution. Their contributions took multiple forms—financial assistance, cultural and media support, and journalistic activism through the printing of Yemeni newspapers, the distribution of pamphlets and publications, and even funding printing presses for the revolutionaries. Yemeni expatriates introduced Arab and international audiences to the plight of Yemen, exposing the crimes of the Imamate and explaining why the Free Officers rose up against the despotic regime.
Their support extended beyond the revolution itself to the nascent national institutions established in its wake, such as the Yemen Bank for Reconstruction and Development and the National Tobacco and Matches Company, where expatriates purchased shares and invested heavily. After all, the Revolution was born from the very conditions of hardship and deprivation that had forced Yemenis into exile in the first place.
With the wide support of expatriates, major Yemeni political organizations emerged abroad as the intellectual and political backbone of the Revolution. These included the Permanent General Student Conference, the Unified Yemeni Student Association, the Arab Nationalist Movement, and the Yemeni Union. They produced numerous pamphlets and publications denouncing both the Imamate in the north and British colonialism in the south—such as Ahmad Muhammad Numan’s How to Understand the Yemeni Cause and Muhammad al-Zubayri’s Colonial Conspiracies Against Yemeni Unity.
When recalling the role of expatriates, many pioneering figures come to mind—individuals who made remarkable contributions, both political and financial. Among them was Abdulghani Mutahar al-Areeqi, who returned from Ethiopia and dedicated his commercial network to opposing Imam Ahmad, while also mobilizing donations from fellow traders to support the Free Officers. Likewise, Sheikh Abdullah al-Hakimi, from his base in Cardiff, UK, launched the newspaper Al-Salam to rally opposition against the Imams.
Today, with the resurgence of the Imamate in its modern guise, embodied by the Houthi militia designated by many as a terrorist group, Yemen once again faces an existential threat. New waves of emigration have been triggered—not only northward but toward every corner of the globe. Yet unlike in the past, Yemeni youth abroad today are better educated, more politically aware, and more capable of engaging the international community to expose the tragedy unfolding in their homeland. As Yemen’s modern history has consistently shown, the Imamate and progress are irreconcilable opposites.
In the United States, for example, Yemeni expatriate youth are making significant contributions to promoting Yemen’s heritage and culture through expanding trade, business, and especially through the establishment of cafés and restaurants that showcase Yemeni coffee, honey, and traditional cuisine. While introducing American audiences to Yemen’s rich cultural heritage, these enterprises simultaneously convey an important message: Yemen is a country of civilization and culture, not defined by the Houthi militia, which thrives only on war and destruction.
Equally, the commercial and economic successes of expatriates constitute a crucial economic lifeline for Yemen itself. According to estimates, remittances from Yemeni expatriates reached approximately USD 5.6 billion in 2023, serving as a vital source of stability for millions of families and a major pillar of the national economy during years of war and crisis.
Much has transpired between the Revolution of 1962 and its 63rd anniversary. Yet the constant remains: the Yemeni people, who once endured the harshest conditions of ignorance, poverty, and disease in the 19th and 20th centuries, rose to break the chains of tyranny. Today, thanks to the opportunities made possible by the September Revolution, a new generation of Yemenis—better educated, more aware, and more empowered—is capable of standing resolutely against the resurgence of the Imamate, no matter how it seeks to disguise itself behind republican slogans.
The Yemeni expatriate will remain a steadfast supporter of his people’s struggle at home, by every possible means. For the hands of the new Imamate cannot obscure the light of September—a light not born of dawn itself, but of the will and struggle of free Yemenis, which will continue to illuminate their path for generations to come.
