United Nations: The UN Security Council has demanded the immediate withdrawal of a Yemeni rebel group that took control of a key city near the capital, Sana’a, last week, along with all other armed groups involved in the fighting.
The Al Houthi rebels captured Amran, about 80km north of Sana’a, on Tuesday after weeks of fighting with the conservative Hashid tribal confederation, one of the country’s largest, which is allied with Yemen’s Muslim Brotherhood group. Witnesses said bodies littered the ground and the Hashid fighters were nowhere to be seen.
The council demanded in a press statement that the Al Houthis and other armed groups disarm, swiftly implement existing ceasefire agreements and hand over weapons and ammunition seized in Amran to authorities loyal to the national government.
Council members also demanded “that the current turmoil should not extend to other parts of the country, including Sana’a”.
Yemen, the poorest Arab nation, is facing multiple challenges including confronting the world’s most dangerous Al Qaida offshoot in several cities, a secessionist movement in the south and the Al Houthi rebellion in the north.
The Al Houthis waged a six-year insurgency in the north against President Ali Abdullah Saleh which officially ended in 2010, but fighting has often reignited, and attempts at lasting ceasefires have failed.
Arab Spring protests in 2011 forced Saleh to step down after 33 years and his successor, President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi, has been struggling since then with a transition to democracy, promoting national reconciliation and restructuring the military and security to ensure loyalty to his government. Hadi has accused Saleh of trying to stage a “coup” to abort the transition process.
The Security Council “noted with concern that spoilers continue to stoke the conflict in the north in an attempt to obstruct the political transition”.
In February, the council unanimously approved a resolution authorising sanctions against individuals and organisations threatening peace, security or stability in Yemen and established a committee to decide who should face sanctions and to monitor their implementation, and a panel of experts to assist with investigations.
