Al Houthi rebels give Yemen president ultimatum

Aden: Yemen’s Al Houthi rebels, who are in control of the capital, gave the president 10 days starting Friday to form a government, hinting at a takeover attempt if their demands are not met.

The group, also known as Ansar Allah, rallied some 3,000 tribal leaders in Sana’a, where they delivered a communique warning President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi that ‘all revolutionary options are open’ if he failed to form a government.

“Our next meeting will be at the headquarters of the decision making,” said Deif Allah Rassam, spokesman of the so-called Popular Tribal Alliance. A second speaker at the rally, Najib Al Mansouri, called for the formation of a ‘salvation military council’.

The government formation is part of a UN deal to reach a peaceful settlement to Yemen’s political crisis. The deal stated that the president would appoint a new prime minister after consulting with two advisers, one representing Al Houthis and a second representing Yemen’s disgruntled southern region. After naming a prime minister, the president, together with different political factions, would form a new cabinet which would present its programme to parliament within a month.

However, after the appointment of Prime Minister, Khalid Bahah more than two weeks ago, disputes among the political factions have delayed the formation of the new government.

Hadi supported a proposal that gives the ruling party nine cabinet seats and other political parties another nine ministries, while Al Houthis and the southerners each get six portfolios. Hadi meanwhile would personally appoint four ‘sovereign’ ministries.

That proposal was rejected by the political parties who demanded one of two options: either all 24 factions that signed the UN deal receive a ministerial portfolio or else a cabinet of independent technocrats with no party affiliations be formed.

Proposal rejected

A presidential official speaking on condition of anonymity said Bahah rejected the technocrat cabinet proposal, believing that directly involving the political factions in the new government was the only way to ensure their lasting support. The official said that talks are ongoing to reach a compromise.

The deal signed by Al Houthis, Hadi and the rest of Yemen’s political factions, stipulated that Al Houthis would withdraw their forces from all cities and hand over all captured barracks to the military.

The communique that came out of Friday’s rally however called for the establishment of ‘revolutionary committees’ across the country, in reference to the group’s militias that have swept through the capital and other cities. The group has previously stated that its committees will continue to fight Al Qaida militants and uproot corruption.

Hadi said a few days ago the army is the only force entitled to defend the country against terrorism and the only force that should be fighting against Al Qaida, calling on Al Houthis to disband their committees and withdraw.

Over the past year, after descending from their highland home in Sa’ada province, Al Houthis fought their way to Sana’a and other cities — battling conservative Sunnis, Al Qaida militants and the traditional power brokers of the Islamist Islah Party.

Over the past three days, security officials said at least 250 people were killed in clashes between Al Houthis and an influential tribe in the town of Radda, a known Al Qaida stronghold some 200 kilometres south of Sana’a.

Al Houthi fighters entered the town last week after an army battalion station there retreated. Local security officials and tribal leaders say the battalion commander is a loyalist of former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, who they accuse of secretly aiding Al Houthis against Hadi’s administration.

The Al Houthi offensive has pushed Yemen into even deeper turmoil.