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Peace Talks With Rebels Falter in Yemen U.N. Reports Yemen Deal With Rebels
(about 7 hours later)
SANA, Yemen — Fighting in the streets of the Yemeni capital, Sana, continued on Saturday as United Nations mediators struggled to reach a peace agreement between the transitional government and rebels from the Shiite-minority clans in the north. SANA, Yemen — The special adviser to the United Nations on Yemen said late Saturday night that the government had agreed to a deal with a rebel group to end weeks of protests and days of violence around the capital.
News reports say more than 120 people have been killed since the fighting began earlier this month. A security official, speaking on the condition of anonymity, said at least 16 soldiers were killed and more than 83 injured; 16 civilians were also killed and at least 41 injured. The envoy, Jamal Benomar, did not disclose any contents of the agreement, raising questions about its solidity, but he described it in glowing terms. “This agreement shall be a national document that will advance the path of peaceful change, and will lay the foundations for a national partnership and for security and stability,” he said in a statement late Saturday.
The clashes are the culmination of weeks of escalating protests by the rebel group, known as the Houthis, who have blocked roads out of the capital to press President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi to rescind cuts to fuel subsidies and give them a greater voice in the government. The announcement, after days of failed efforts to broker a deal, coincided with a new peak in the violence here in the capital between the transitional government and Shiite rebels from the north.
Thousands of armed tribesmen have encircled the capital, and the confrontation there has raised fears that Sunni Muslim extremists — some linked to Al Qaeda — will join the battle from the south, potentially turning it into a sectarian war. News reports say more than 120 people have been killed since the fighting began this month. The clashes erupted after weeks of escalating protests by the rebel group, known as the Houthis, who have blocked roads out of the capital to press President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi to rescind cuts to fuel subsidies and give them a greater voice in the government.
A United Nations envoy, Jamal Benomar, has held talks for three days with the Houthis and the government. The fighting has escalated as the talks appeared to have broken down. Thousands of armed tribesmen have encircled the capital, and the confrontation has raised fears that Sunni Muslim extremists — some linked to Al Qaeda — will join the battle from the south.
The rebels shelled the official state television building, a central symbol of government authority, setting it ablaze. International airlines have cut off flights to Sana because of fighting around the airport. On Saturday, the rebels shelled the official state television building, a central symbol of government authority, setting it ablaze.
By nightfall, the Houthis had claimed control of the building. and the state media’s live coverage went off air. It later resumed with broadcasts from a different location.
In response to the violence, the government imposed a curfew on parts of the capital.