CAIRO — The Shi'ite rebellion appears to have resumed in Yemen.
Yemeni troops and Shi'ite rebels have renewed battles in the northern
province of Saada. The rebels were believed to have received help from Iran.
On Feb. 6, at least 20 people were killed and scores injured in clashes
between government troops and the movement led by the late Shiite leader
Hussein Badr Eddin Al Houthi, Middle East Newsline reported. Al Houthi was killed by government troops in
2004.
[On Tuesday, Interpol requested intelligence regarding 23 convicts who
escaped from a Yemen prison last week. One of the fugitives was identified
as an Al Qaida operative sentenced to death for plotting the USS Cole
bombing in 2000.]
The latest fighting has taken place in the Saifa mountains, about 250
kilometers north of Sanaa. Witnesses said the Yemen Army employed artillery
and mortars against the Shi'ite rebels, identified as members of the
Believing Youth. Shi'ites comprise nearly 40 percent of the Yemeni
population.
Officials said a military unit sought to capture a rebel base near the
border of Saudi Arabia. They said the battle lasted several hours.
The government has not released casualty figures. Witnesses reported
that military vehicles transported soldiers to a hospital in Saada.
The battle marked the third round of the rebel war between Shi'ites and
the army. In January, eight soldiers and eight rebels were killed in renewed
fighting in Saada.
In late 2005, nearly 800 rebels and soldiers were killed in fighting
that included the launching of rockets by the Believing Youth. Supporters of
Al Houthi also sought to conduct attacks against Western embassies in Sanaa.
Western diplomatic sources said the United States and Saudi Arabia
helped the Yemeni military in the war against the rebels. They said Saudi
warplanes were believed to have conducted bombing missions against rebel
strongholds in the Saifa mountains.
