Islamic University of Medina in Saudi Arabia, founded the Dar al-Hadith institution at Dammaj in 1979, located in the heart of Sa'dah governorate which would later be the stronghold of the Houthi movement. Dammaj would later be turned into a pilgrimage site for thousands of students from across the world who sought to study Salafism in its purest form. As the center targeted Zaydi adherents and converted them to Salafism, such Saudi and Yemeni governments policy has arguably led to a Zaydi revivalist movement at 1980s in response to rising Salafi hegemony which challenges the traditional Zaydi heartlands at northern regions of Yemen. Houthi rise in Sa'dah During the Houthi insurgency between 2004 to 2010, the Yemeni government led by president Ali Abdullah Saleh recruited over 5,000 Salafi fighters to fight alongside them. Houthis also alleged that the government was using al-Qaeda fighters as mercenaries to fight against them. At least 69 students from Dar al-Hadith were killed during Operation Scorched Earth while fighting on the government's side. When the 2011 uprising against Ali Abdullah Saleh started, the Houthis joined the protests and took the opportunity to seize control of Sa'dah on March in response to "Karama Massacre" incident at capital Sana'a which prompted flood of army and government defections nationwide. The Houthis appointed former Saleh loyalist and arms dealer Fares Mana'a as their Sa'dah governor to manage military and security affairs for the governorate. The Salafi group in Dar al-Hadith however denounced the protests, siding with the government instead. By July 2011, the Houthis have slowly expanded their battle towards neighbouring Al Jawf Governorate by clashing with tribal fighters loyal to the Sunni Islamist Al-Islah party, in which over 120 people were killed. The fighting erupted after pro-Islah tribes first took control of the governorate when its governor loyal to Ali Abdullah Saleh has fled, but Houthis refused to hand over a Yemeni military base which they had seized several months earlier. Fighting continued until 11 July with more than 30 people killed. The Houthis claimed that some elements of the pro-Islah militias had links to al-Qaeda. In August, a car bomb has killed 14 Houthi rebels in Al Jawf during a meeting in a government administration complex at Al Matammah. Although the Houthis initially blamed the US and Israel for the bombing, Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula eventually claimed responsibility, with the organization having declared a holy