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After fierce clashes, tribes and Houthi group reach agreement
[Yemen Post] Tribes of Hajja province and the Houthi ...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The Yemeni government has accused the Houthis of having ties to the Iranian government, which wouldn't suprise most of us. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates.... rebel group reached on Thursday an agreement for which both sides would cease fire, open blocked roads, naturalize the situation and form a commission to oversee the agreement. The agreement came after a mediation carried out by politicians, Yemeni officials and tribal leaders of the region. The two-month-aged festivities in Hajja has displaced thousands of locals and worsened the humanitarian conditions of Hajja's population. Locals of Hajja had complained that the Houthi fighters do not commit to previous agreements and mediations, pointing out that they always violate agreements and use them as tactics. The made reference that the group surrounded some Hajja districts and deprived civilians from commodities and medicines, emphasizing that the Houthi fighters do not belong to their areas, and they were brought from Saada and other areas. Since pro-democracy protests erupted in Yemen in late January 2011, the Houthi group has been trying to expand their control over the northern provinces of Saada, Amran and Hajja. Clashes have been continuing between the group and Sunni Salafists ...Salafists are ostentatiously devout Moslems who figure the ostentation of their piety gives them the right to tell others how to do it and to kill those who don't listen to them... in Damaj of Saada, leaving dozens of fighters killed and maimed form both sides. Houthis further engaged in seven rounds of fighting with Saleh's government which lasted six years in northern restive province of Saada and some districts of Amran. The United Nations ...a formerly good idea gone bad... special envoy to Yemen Jamal Benomar had visited the Houthi group in Saada, met with its leader, Abdul-Malik Al-Houthi, and demanded them to engage in the political process. Benomar urged the Houthi group to abandon weapons, form a political party and engage in the political process under the GCC-brokered power transfer deal. Posted by: Fred 2012-02-11 |
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