sana’a: At least 20 people were killed in heavy fighting between Sunni Muslim tribesmen and Shia Houthi rebels in central Yemen yesterday, increasing fears of outright sectarian warfare.
The Houthi rebels also entered Radaa city, in the central province of Al Bayda, a bastion of the Yemen-based Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), local officials and residents said.
The Houthis established themselves as Yemen’s new powerbrokers last month, capturing the capital Sanaa on September 21 to little resistance from residents or from the weak administration of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. Their ascendance has angered al Qaeda, which views Shias as heretics and Houthis as pawns of Iran. Last week, AQAP claimed a suicide bombing on a Houthi gathering that killed at least 47 people.
In yesterday’s fighting, medical sources said 20 people from both sides were killed on the outskirts and inside the city of Ibb, 150km south of Sana’a. “We are hearing the sound of machine-guns and mortars everywhere,” a resident told Reuters by telephone.
The city of Ibb borders Al Bayda province.
Al Qaeda said in a statement that its fighters had stormed the town of Odein, near Ibb on Wednesday, killing three soldiers and holding it for nine hours before withdrawing.
Houthi fighters have been making advances outside of Sana’a in recent days, taking over cities and towns with the apparent agreement of the authorities there. At least 10 people were killed on Thursday in fighting between Houthi tribesmen and Al Qaeda-linked militants.
AFP
