Sana’a: Yemen’s Ansarullah Shia militia vowed yesterday to press ahead with an offensive it launched in September to consolidate its grip across Yemen, despite fierce resistance from Sunni tribes and Al Qaeda.
The Arabian Peninsula country has been rocked by instability since the Shia fighters, also known as Houthis, seized control of Sana’a in September.
They have since expanded their presence in central and western Yemen, but have met fierce resistance from powerful Sunni tribesmen backed by fighters from Al Qaeda.
“The Yemeni people is determined to pursue its revolution... and combat corruption,” Ansarullah chief Abdulmalik Al Houthi said in a statement published by Yemeni media.
He said he will also push ahead with the offensive to “guarantee security” and “put an end to political tyranny”—repeating slogans used by the Houthis to justify launching their campaign in September.
On the streets of central Sana’a, meanwhile, hundreds of youths staged a rally demanding that the Houthi militiamen withdraw from the capital, a correspondent said.
The demonstrators marched to the mayor’s office carrying banners that read: “No to armed groups” and “Yes to security and stability”.
On September 21, the Houthis signed a UN-brokered deal with the government under which they had pledged to lay down their arms and pull out of the city.
They have yet to respect the terms of the agreement.
In his statement, the Houthi leader also called on supporters to “organise better in order to prepare for any eventuality”, without elaborating.
He also warned of “strict measures” that could be adopted, but again did not provide any details on what these might be.
In another development, Ansarullah has told residents in areas it controls that yesterday will no longer be considered part of the weekend because it is “the rest day of the Jews”, a militia official said.
Yemen, like some other Arab countries, observes the weekend on Friday and Saturday.
The militia official said the new regulation has entered into force in the Houthi stronghold of Saada in the remote north, as well as in the neighbouring province of Amran.
In the south, meanwhile, two soldiers were killed yesterday and four wounded in a bomb explosion in Hadramawt province.AFP
