Al-Mukhtar al-Qasim (died 956) was animam of theZaidi state inYemen who held or claimed power from 936 to 956.
Al-Qasim bin Ahmad was the eldest son of the imaman-Nasir Ahmad, who died in 934. An-Nasir's death ushered into a period of internal political turbulence among the Zaidis of highland Yemen. His third son,al-Muntakhab al-Hasan, demanded theimamate, but the latter's elder brother, al-Mukhtar al-Qasim lodged counterclaims.[1] Al-Muntakhab died in 936; however, a younger brother calledal-Mansur Yahya is recognized by Zaidihistoriography as the legitimate successor of an-Nasir after 934. H[citation needed]e was supported by the majority of the Zaidis after al-Muntakhab's death.[2] In 956, al-Mukhtar al-Qasim, who ruled from his base inSa'dah, was able to seize the important commercial and political centreSan'a, which had hitherto mostly belonged to the rivalYu'firid Dynasty. However, before the year was over, al-Mukhtar was murdered by a powerful lord fromHamdan, Muhammad bin ad-Dahhak. With his death, San'a temporarily reverted to the Yafurids.[3]
| Preceded by | ZaydiImam of Yemen 936–956 | Succeeded by |