The Alwazirs (Bayt al-Wazir, of Wadi Sir in Bani Hushaysh) sought to seize power from the ruling dynasty.Petersen J.E. Tribes and Politics in Yemen. Arabian Peninsula Background Note, No. APBN-007. Published on www.JEPeterson.net, December 2008. On 17 February 1948, tribesmen opposed to Imam Yahya ambushed his car south of Sanaa, at Sawad Hizyaz. The imam, his grandson, and two soldiers were killed; 50 bullets were said to have been found the imam's body. The leader of the ambush, Ali Nasir al-Qardaei, was from the Murad tribe, and had previously been imprisoned by the imam. The Alwaziris then installed their own imam, Abdullah bin Ahmad al-Wazir, to run the kingdom. His rule lasted only for a few weeks.
