. REUTERS
SANAA: Yemen’s minority Houthi fighters took up guard at President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s home on Wednesday but said they had not toppled him, after two days of fighting which left little doubt that the enfeebled leader was now at their mercy.
The Houthis, friendly to Iran, swept into the capital four months ago and have emerged as the dominant force in the country.
For now at least they appear to have decided to stop short of overthrowing Hadi, possibly preferring to exert control over a weakened leader rather than take on the burden of power.
Their defeat of the presidential guards in gunbattles and artillery duels in recent days adds to disarray in a country where the United States is also carrying out drone strikes against one of the most powerful branches of al Qaeda. After clashes at the president’s office and home on Tuesday, the Houthis’ leader threatened in a speech overnight to take further “measures” unless Hadi bows to his demand.
Published in The Express Tribune, January 22nd, 2015.
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Whos fighting whom in that region FGS .. The Arab spring was a big joke .I only know that Uncle Sam is playing referee to the gun games flying around.
Arab-Iran tussel is growing and this time Arabs have another enemy very close to their borders, Jews.
The risk of sectarianism YEMEN TIMES 1 January 2015 Should sectarianism increase, it would in part be a reaction to this flexing of Houthi muscle. But history did not start on Sept. 21, and to understand the Houthis’ behavior, it is necessary to go back to their days of political, economic and religious marginalization.
The Houthis had legitimate grievances against the government of Ali Abdullah Saleh, who fought six wars against the armed rebel group between 2004 and 2010. Ongoing fighting not only bled the country of its treasury, but left a significant humanitarian crisis in its wake. The area was off-limits to journalists, so the actual toll of the fighting in Sa’ada is still unclear. The government is still scrambling for funds to help civilians rebuild houses and agricultural infrastructure that was destroyed years ago, so that displaced families can finally return home.
The Houthis are part of a Zaydi branch of Shia Islam, and, whatever popular support their movement may have garnered, they remain a religious minority in Yemen. Their stated goal of the past decade—more autonomy for Yemen’s northern region, was partly the result of the marginalization they suffered under the Saleh government. It was this marginalization and the killing of the group’s leader, a dissident cleric, in 2004 that strengthened the movement’s resolve.
After years of oppression, the Houthis are on a power trip and appear to be insensitive to the threat of sectarianism—something Al-Qaeda has already begun using to good effect. And despite their best efforts, Islah has not yet been politically neutralized. The Houthis risk pushing some Islahis into Al-Qaeda’s arms.
GCC flays Houthi blitz, backs Hadi 22 Jan. 2015 Arab News RIYADH: GCC foreign ministers on Wednesday accused Shiite militia in Yemen of attempting to stage a “coup” against President Abdu Rabbo Mansour Hadi, a day after the Houthi fighters seized the presidential palace. “The states of the Gulf Cooperation Council consider what happened in Sanaa on Tuesday... a coup against the legitimate authority,” the ministers said in a statement following an emergency meeting in Riyadh. The GCC also expressed support for the “constitutionally legitimate authority” of Hadi, and rejected “all measures aimed at imposing change by force.” They warned that Gulf states “would take all measures necessary to protect their security, stability and vital interests in Yemen.”