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| Arabia |
| Yemen's Houthis' over-ambition bounces back |
| 2015-02-06 |
| [YEMENONLINE.INFO] When the sun rose in Yemen on Thursday, the leadership of the revivalist Zaydi movement Ansarullah woke up to a reality they created but probably would have rather have avoided. On Sunday, soon after the National Conference in a sports hall in Sanaa drew to a close, Ansarullah (also known as the Houthis) issued a final statement on the conference's main conclusions and demands. Among those demands was a three-day-deadline, which expired on Wednesday evening, for Yemen's political parties to reach a solution to the current crisis. Otherwise, the statement read, the "revolutionary leadership" will take over and act as decision maker during the transitional period. The conference's official title might give an idea of all-inclusive gathering, but most political parties boycotted the event organized by Ansarullah. A few tribal leaders attended. So did some members of Yemen's long-time ruling party General People's Congress and military officers, yet another sign that there was cooperation between Ansarullah and political and military factions loyal to 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... Anti-Ansarullah demonstrations While the conference went on, anti-Ansarullah demonstrations took place in various cities, including Taiz, Ibb, Aden and Sanaa's Tahrir Square. The violent disruption of the protests in the capital by Ansarullah fighters and their harassment campaign of local journalists and activists helped to undo the movement's populist mantle and uncover its more disquieting side. The U.N. secretary-general's special adviser on Yemen, Jamal Benomar, confirmed a few days ago that recently-resigned President Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi remains effectively under house arrest. Hadi said he could reconsider his resignation if Ansarullah abandons the capital and security is restored. However, a clean conscience makes a soft pillow... Ansarullah has recently established a reputation for not honouring their part of the deals they make, another reason why Hadi's immediate comeback looks unlikely. Since taking over the capital in September, the movement's leadership got comfortable with using Hadi's weak government as window-dressing while they effectively called the shots. Emboldened by their new position, they went a few steps too far in pressuring the government to the point it had not options but to resign. Their insistence for Hadi to backtrack on the resignation he submitted last week is a sign of Ansarullah's anxiety about a situation they did not seem to expect. Ansarullah's military offensive across much of north and central Yemen also added new groups to their long list of enemies. They are not only a primary target for Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula ...the latest incarnation of various Qaeda and Qaeda-allied groups, including the now-defunct Aden-Abyan Islamic Army that boomed the USS Cole in 2000... . Powerful tribes in Marib and al-Bayda have already turned against them and serious tensions verging on armed festivities between the northern Zaydi movement and Salafist groups have resumed. |
| Posted by:Fred |
| #1 TOPIX NEWS BLOG > Various Artics repor that the Houthis have now formally dissolved the Yemeni Parliament + are setting up a new transition authority. |
| Posted by: JosephMendiola 2015-02-06 21:05 |