message was posted on jihadist website Shumukh al-Islam, al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula leader Nasir al-Wuhayshi announced they would be deploying fighters to Dammaj to combat the Houthis. Another Yemeni al-Qaeda leader, sheikh Abu Zubair Adil al-Abab released a statement during a lecture in which he stated al-Qaeda would be providing training to Sunni fighters in Dammaj and warned the Houthis that "You tried our strength, and the day of al-Ghadir is not far from you." Nasir al-Wuhayshi is himself an alumnus of one of Dar al-Hadith's offshoots and according to Said Obaid, chairman of the Al-Jemhi Centre for Researches and Studies, "graduates of these schools are almost ready to be Al-Qaeda members." On 12 December, an audio message was posted on jihadist websites by al-Qaeda leader Ibrahim al-Rubaish, which declared jihad against Houthi rebels. See also List of modern conflicts in the Middle East References Military operations involving Yemen Conflicts in 2011 2011 in Yemen Houthi insurgency in Yemen Yemeni Crisis (2011–present) Saada Governorate Battles in 2011