Talks on new Yemeni government collapse over Shi'ite Houthi subsidy demands

Al Qaeda attacks kill at least 33 people in Yemen Mon, Oct 20 15:09 PM EDT By Mohammed Ghobari SANAA (Reuters) - At least 33 people were killed in a suicide bombing and gun attacks in central Yemen, tribal sources and medics said on Monday, as al Qaeda fighters seized a Yemeni city in a new challenge to the central government. Violence has spread in Yemen since Shi'ite Muslim Houthis took over the capital, Sanaa, last month, threatening the stability of a country that borders on Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter. Houthi forces have fanned out into central and western Yemen, posing a challenge to Sunni tribesmen and al Qaeda militants, who regard the Houthis as heretics. Fighting has flared in several provinces. In the latest attacks, an al Qaeda suicide bomber drove a car towards the home of a local government official in the town of Radda in al-Bayda province, killing at least 13 people, medical sources said. Ansar al-Sahrai, an al Qaeda affiliate, said in a statement the attack targeted a meeting at a Houthi leader's house and that "dozens were killed or wounded". Earlier in the day, tribal sources said al-Sharia fighters on Sunday night shelled a Radda house where a local Houthi leader lives, killing gunmen. At least 10 Houthi fighters were killed in two other incidents, one on the outskirts of Radda and another at a checkpoint in the nearby Ibb province, tribal sources said. Ansar al-Sharia said in a report from the al-Orsh area in al-Bayda that "dozens of Houthis" have been killed or wounded in battles since Sunday evening, and that two of its fighters were killed in Ibb. Radda, with a population of 60,000, has long been a stronghold of Ansar, which includes many fighters from local tribes who are up in arms over the presence of Houthi rebels in the mainly Sunni region. There is growing international concern about Yemen's turmoil because of its proximity to Saudi Arabia and international shipping lanes, as well as the risk of al Qaeda using the country as a springboard for attacks abroad. QAEDA INSURGENTS SEIZED MAJOR TOWN In a significant development, residents and activists said al Qaeda fighters had marched into al-Odayn, a city of 200,000 in the central province of Ibb, captured the local government offices and raised their black and white flag over it. "They came in at midday, invaded the town, chanting Allahu Akbar (God is Greater) and seized the government compound unopposed," one resident of al-Odayn said. Residents also said Sunni militants destroyed the home of a local Houthi member who had been trying to recruit local fighters to join a popular committee, a kind of a grassroots police force Houthis have established in other parts of the Arabian Peninsula country. The Houthis' advance and clashes with Ansar al-Sharia prompted often faction-ridden regional Sunni tribesmen to close ranks to try to protect themselves. In a statement issued on Sunday, a committee of local tribesmen warned that they would not tolerate the presence of "any armed militia from any party" in al-Bayda province and called on the central government to step in to maintain order. "The state must carry out its national duty to spare the province of sectarian strife," said the statement, which was obtained by Reuters. The Yemeni armed forces have largely avoided confronting the Houthis since they moved into Sanaa last month, leading to speculation that President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi was tacitly allowing the group to move freely while a new government is being formed. Whether it would command more authority than the last one is questionable, however. While the Houthis signed a power-sharing pact with other political parties, that has not deterred them from thrusting into other regions of Yemen. In a further sign of gathering chaos, al Qaeda militants on Monday raided the Um al-Maghareb military airport in the eastern province of Hadramout province, not far from the Saudi border, and looted equipment, military and security sources said. (Reporting by Mohammed Ghobari; Writing by Sami Aboudi; Editing by Mark Heinrich, Larry King) ================================ Talks on new Yemeni government collapse over Shi'ite Houthi subsidy demands Sun, Aug 24 08:00 AM EDT image 1 of 5 By Mohammed Ghobari SANAA (Reuters) - Talks on forming a new Yemeni government collapsed on Sunday over demands by Shi'ite Muslim Houthis to restore fuel subsidies cut by President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, officials said, and further demonstrations in the capital Sanaa were expected. The Houthis, who have been fighting for years for more power for their Zaydi Shi'ite Muslim sect in north Yemen, have massed tens of thousands of supporters on the outskirts of Sanaa to press the government to quit and to restore fuel subsidies. The government offered on Saturday to resign within a month to pave the way for a technocrat administration that would review the fuel subsidy issue, but officials said the Houthis had demanded an immediate reinstatement of the subsidies. The standoff has raised fears for the stability of Yemen, a majority Sunni Muslim country of 25 million that is allied with the United States and borders major oil exporter Saudi Arabia. The government blamed the Houthis for the failure of talks. "The Houthis have reneged on all previous understandings, including joining a new government and an offer to reduce the price of oil products, at the first government meeting," Abdel Malek al-Mekhlafi, a spokesman for the government committee assigned to negotiate with the Houthis, told Reuters. "They have threatened to escalate (their protests) if the decision to raise fuel prices is not cancelled," he added. Daifallah al-Shami, a leader of the Houthi group, made clear the demand for reinstating fuel subsidies was non-negotiable for his side and said the peaceful protests would continue. "(Reversing the increase in fuel prices) is a popular demand and cannot be abandoned," Shami told Reuters. "No other issues can be discussed." MORE RALLIES PLANNED Rival demonstrations are scheduled to take place in Sanaa later on Sunday, one by Houthi loyalists and one by supporters of President Hadi, but residents said they did not expect the two to come into contact with each other. Hadi has put the army on a state of heightened alert to tackle any resort to violence during the Sanaa demonstrations. The Houthis have been emboldened by recent military gains against rival Sunni Muslim tribesmen and allied government troops north of the capital. In a report on their website on Sunday, the Houthis said that one of their members had been killed and three wounded in an attack by Sunni Islamist gunmen on one of their offices in eastern Sanaa on Saturday. The al-Qaeda-affiliated Ansar al-Sharia said in messages posted on social media that two of its members had been killed in the incident. Yemen's Gulf neighbours and Western partners, which helped the country stave off civil war in 2011, have watched the dispute between Sanaa and the Houthis with mounting concern. Last week, they urged the Houthis to stop trying to gain territory by force and to engage in a political transition process. The government's decision last month to raise fuel prices was part of efforts to rein in its budget deficit and helped the impoverished Arab state to conclude talks on a $560 million loan from the International Monetary Fund (IMF).. Last year, it spent about $3 billion on the fuel subsidies, nearly a third of all state revenues. The Houthis, whose protests began last Monday, have pitched tents on a road leading to the airport near to key ministries. Their protests have tapped into wider public anger among Yemenis over the subsidy cuts. A previous attempt to cut subsidies, in 2005, led to unrest in which about 20 people were killed and more than 200 wounded. The reform was cancelled. (Reporting by Mohamed Ghobari; Writing by Sami Aboudi; Editing by Gareth Jones) =============================== Sunni tribesmen and Houthi fighters clash in Yemen, 15 dead Fri, Oct 17 14:06 PM EDT image 1 of 2 SANAA (Reuters) - At least 15 people were killed in heavy fighting between Sunni Muslim tribesmen and Shi'ite Houthi rebels in central Yemen on Friday, 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 Sept. 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 Shi'ites 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 Friday's fighting, medical sources said 15 people from both sides were killed on the outskirts and inside the city of Ibb, 150 km (90 miles) south of Sanaa. "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 Sanaa 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. In addition to the rise of AQAP and the Houthi takeover of Sanaa, Yemen, an impoverished country of 25 million people, faces a secessionist movement in the south. The widespread and growing instability has alarmed neighboring Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter, and other Gulf Arab states. Western and Gulf Arab countries have supported a U.N.-backed political transition since 2012 led by Hadi and meant to shepherd the country to stability after decades of autocracy. (Reporting by Mohammed Ghobari; Writing by Rania El Gamal; Editing by Gareth Jones) =======================