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On Thursday, Yemeni tribesmen marched outside capital city Sana’a and protested against Shi’ite rebels, whose anti-government campaign is threatening to intensify the country’s political crisis.
Carrying shoulder-held rocket launchers and assault rifles on them, member of the Harith tribe had taken to the streets just outside Sana’a, voicing their support for President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi. Increasingly facing pressure from Zaidi Shi’ite rebels, also known as the Huthis, Hadi had reduced the recent controversial hike in fuel prices, and promised to choose a new Prime Minister.
However, the rebels, who had set up camp both outside and inside Sana’a, dismissed the 30% cut in the fuel price hike as insufficient, pressing on their demands to end the alleged corruption in the government. They have threatened to intensify their campaign against the Yemeni government, which had for a brief time included blocking the main roadways into Sana’a on Wednesday.
The tribesmen, screaming pro-government slogans, marched closer to a Huthi camp near the airport on Thursday.
“The army and the people are united”, they chanted, as they vowed to protect Sana’a.
A statement the protesters prepared urged the government to “protect the people… and to spread its authority over the whole country”.
Tribes loyal to the government moved with federal soldiers battling the rebels, who have been broadening their control in the northern part of the country, beyond their stronghold Saada.
According to sources, clashes in the province of Jawf on Thursday saw the Huthis attempt to seize Fardat Nahm, around 40 kilometers to the northeast of Sana’a. Rebels in Jawf wanted to control the main road that connects Sana’a to the province of Marib.
Zaidi fighters have camped around Sana’a for over two weeks, holding protests throughout most of August to force the government to resign. According to experts, rebels are trying to establish that they are the dominant political force in Yemen’s north, where Shiites are in majority. Yemen has been in a protracted transition since former President Ali Abdullah Saleh was forced to quit in February 2012 after an 11-month uprising.