In recent times, Hashid confederation had for decades been led by the powerful Abushawareb clan. The clan's influence was built on an alliance with the former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who relied on a coalition with the most prominent leader of the Hashid tribal confederation, Sheikh Abdullah ibn Husayn al-Ahmar, to take power in 1978. Until his death on 29 December 2007, Sheikh Abdullah served as the Speaker of Parliament and was considered Yemen's second most powerful person after President Saleh (who, along with many others in the government, also is a member of a Hashid tribe).