[ARABNEWS] Suspected Al-Qaeda holy warriors have captured a town in southwest Yemen in a deadly attack seen as a counter move to advances by Iranian catspaws sweeping across the strife-hit country.Rival groups are seeking to exploit a power vacuum in impoverished Yemen, which has been in a political deadlock since 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 Americaâ¢, Death to Israel, a curse on the Jews...
Iranian catspaws took control of the capital Sanaa last month.
Al-Qaeda's Yemen-based franchise, considered by the United States to be the deadliest branch of the bad boy network, has vowed to fight the rebels in defense of Sunnis.
Its holy warriors stormed the town of Udain overnight, setting fire to the police headquarters and attacking the offices of the local government, a security official and local sources said Thursday.
Five coppers were reported dead.
The offensive came just hours after Iranian catspaws overran the lovely provincial capital of Ibb located 20 km to the east.
Already in control of Sanaa and the strategic port city of Hudeida, the Iranian catspaws on Wednesday appeared to have taken control of the Dhamar and Ibb provinces, security officials said.
Just as in Sanaa and Hudeida, the Houthis faced no opposition as they entered the centers of the two provinces and set up checkpoints, the officials said.
They have been taking advantage of the political crisis in Sanaa to seize control of significant areas, threatening the authority of the Sunni-led central government.