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Yemeni officials say ex-president may be under house arrest
 [DAWN] Yemen's former president, President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, but he didn't invite Donna Summer to the inauguration and Blondie couldn't make it... , has not left his Sanaa home for nearly a week, fuelling speculation that his rebel allies have effectively placed him under house arrest, officials said Tuesday. They spoke four days after differences between the two sides boiled over into festivities in the capital, which left a Saleh aide, Col Khaled al-Rodai, and three rebels dead. The festivities in central Sanaa were followed by the large-scale deployment of forces by the two sides, keeping tensions high. Three days of talks on defusing the crisis have failed, according to the security and military officials, who are affiliated with both sides of the rebel alliance. They spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorised to brief news hounds. 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. Its slogan is God is Great, Death to America™, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews... rebels are allied with Saleh's forces in a war against Yemen's internationally recognised government and a Saudi-led coalition. The civil war has killed over 10,000 civilians, displaced 3 million people, and pushed the country to the brink of famine. An outbreak of cholera has killed 2,000 people. The rift within the rebel alliance could further complicate stalled peace efforts. Gunmen suspected of links to the Houthis on Tuesday beat up Saleh's lawyer and close aide, Mohammed al-Masswary, a vocal critic of the rebels who has frequently accused them of not honouring their part in the alliance. A statement by Saleh's National Congress party condemned the "criminal" attack. Saleh and the Houthis have always been unlikely allies. As president, Saleh had repeatedly gone to war with the Houthis in their northern heartland, but after he stepped down in the wake of Arab Spring protests in 2011 he threw his support behind them. Security forces loyal to Saleh played a key role in helping the Houthis to sweep down from the north and capture Sanaa in 2014. They later went on to seize much of the country. The officials said Saleh has not left his home since a tension-fraught celebration by his party in the capital on Thursday. Posted by: Fred 2017-08-30 |
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