Houthi Shiite fighters shelled Yemen’s state-run television building Friday as they advanced into the capital, causing an interruption in air traffic to the violence-plagued country, officials and residents said.
SANAA: Houthi Shiite fighters shelled Yemen’s state-run television building Friday as they advanced into the capital, causing an interruption in air traffic to the violence-plagued country, officials and residents said.
The fighting was the worst in years in the capital and appeared to be the biggest challenge yet to a U.N.-backed transition to democracy launched after longtime ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh’s ouster in 2012.
The leader of the Houthis indicated that he would dispatch deputies to Sanaa to sign a peace agreement under U.N. auspices, but details were unavailable about when the deal would be concluded.
The conflict intensified Thursday when Shiite Houthi fighters clashed with the army on the outskirts of Sanaa, and expanded into fighting mainly between the Houthis and tribesmen allied with the Sunni al-Ahmar clan, residents said.
Prominent figures from the clan, one of the most powerful tribes in Yemen, hold senior positions in the armed forces and the government.
The fighting also was creeping closer to the private residence of President Abed Rabbou Mansour Hadi, residents said.
As the violence spread, international airlines decided to suspend their flights to the capital for 24 hours, according to the Civil Aviation Authority.
One military source said around 90 Houthi fighters were killed in fighting overnight, and residents told Reuters dozens of bodies and body parts were scattered in the north and northwest of Sanaa where the clashes occurred.
Nearly 40 people were killed on Thursday after members of the pro-government Islah Party and security forces ambushed a convoy of Houthis in an area north of Sana’a. That brought to over 80 the number of people killed in clashes in the past three days in Yemen.
Protesters have been staging demonstrations in the capital for nearly a month, demanding the formation of a new government and reinstatement of fuel subsidies. They say the government is corrupt and marginalizes the country’s Shia community.
Meanwhile, the Human Rights Watch (HRW) recently called on Yemeni authorities to probe the use of force against anti-government protesters in Sana’a and other cities.
The Houthi movement played a key role in the popular revolution that forced former dictator, Ali Abdullah Saleh, to step down in February 2012.
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