Clashes between Shiite Houthi militiamen and Sunni tribesmen fighting alongside suspected al-Qaeda militants killed 26 people in Yemen, local officials said yesterday, as the United Arab Emirates joined Saudi Arabia and Western countries in closing its embassy in the nation.
Heavy fighting continued in the southern mountainous province of al-Bayda, leading to the deaths of 16 Houthi rebels and 10 Sunni people and militants, security officials and tribal sources told reporters.
The state faces collapse in Yemen two weeks after the Houthi group took formal control and continued an armed push southward.
Photo: Reuters
France, the US, Britain, Germany, Italy and Saudi Arabia have closed their missions in the capital, Sana’a, and withdrawn staff, citing security concerns.
The United Arab Emirates yesterday announced the closure of its embassy in Sana’a, state news agency WAM said.
The United Arab Emirates cited “the increasing deterioration of the political and security situation Yemen is witnessing and the tragic events after the Houthis undermined the legitimate authority.”
Yemen’s rich Sunni Muslim neighbors oppose the rebels — who they allege are backed by Iran — and have called their rise to power a coup.
The embassy closures have isolated Yemen’s new rulers and given urgency to talks over internal power-sharing that the Houthis are conducting with opposition parties.
Hailing their advance as a “revolution” aimed at corrupt officials and economic ruin, the Houthis dissolved Yemen’s parliament and set up their own ruling body earlier this month.
The spread of the Houthi movement to Yemen’s tribal regions in the east and south has prompted locals to make common cause with militants from al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, one of the deadliest arms of the global militant organization.
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