Friday 17 April 2009

Beating drums of new war in Yemen

Beating drums of new war in Yemen
By Nasser Arrabyee/16/04/2009


The Yemeni government accused Thursday the Al Houthi rebels of beating drums of a new war in Sa'ada north of the country.

Earlier in the week, Al Houthi spokesman, Saleh Habra, said the problem of Sa'ada will be solved only by abiding by the Qatari-brokered deal between government and rebels which was made in 2007.

"Al Houthi and those outlaws with him like Habra, who beat the drums of war, were the first to refuse the Doha agreement and all peace efforts," said an official statement published by the government media.


"Saleh Habra was and still thinking that Doha agreement will bestow a lot of money and personal advantages on him."


On his part, Saleh Habra, in a statement sent to journalists, said, "If the Yemenis want a solution for Sa'ada problem, they should demand the government to abide by the Doha agreement."




"I'm sill adhering to Doha agreement and if the government does not want me as a person, it does not mean that the agreement is no longer valid."

He said they will defend themselves against any possible attack, warning all Yemenis from taking the position of lookers on.

"If everybody keeps just watching and doing nothing, then they all will pay the price for that attitude, and they will be held accountable to Allah. For us, we will defend ourselves." He said.

The government accused the rebels of violating the truce which was declared by President Ali Abdullah Saleh on July17th, 2008 to end a four-year sporadic war.

"Those deviant and astray elements are still doing banditry and sabotage acts, undermining security and social tranquility, plundering private and public properties, killing and assassinations of tribal sheikhs and social dignitaries from Sa'ada province," said the official statement.


Al Houthi and his subordinate Habra do not like the climates of peace and security, because they get a lot of advantages from wars, they get money and they mislead naive young people to the battles, the statement added.



The statement said the rebels built new trenches and ditches in the mountains like the Ghaflah in Galahad, and they are now building ditches and fortifications and refuges in the mountains which overlook the roads in Maran.

"The rebels kidnapped an employee from the communication building in Sakeen town, in Sa'ada, and bombed a house of a citizen there, and fired at the positions of the government troops in Lahman, Jaza'a and Mosoh mountains in Haidan and Malahaidh districts."


Meanwhile, the opposition parties called for a national solution for the armed rebellion in Sa'ada.



"The quick fix solutions are not enough; there should be national solutions based on good knowledge of the reasons behind this war," said Sultan al Atwani, the chairman of the supreme council of opposition alliance.


"The constitution and laws should govern the government and Al Houthis, interest of the nation should be above interests of individuals," he said.


These developments came after government accused Al Houthi rebels of killing two road workers and injuring two others in Al Mahather area in Sa'ada earlier this week. The rebels also were accused of assassinating a prominent tribal Shiekh and his son who are loyal to the government.

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