SANA’A: A powerful suicide bomb attack on Shia militia fighters in central Yemen left dozens of people dead yesterday, military and tribal sources said.
Yemen has been rocked by fresh instability since the Shia fighters, known as Houthis, seized control of the capital Sana’a in September. The Houthis have since been expanding their presence throughout the Arabian Peninsula nation but are facing fierce resistance from local Sunni tribes and Al Qaeda’s powerful Yemeni branch. Yesterday’s blast hit a large gathering of Huthis at the residence of a local tribal chief in Rada, a mixed Shia-Sunni town that has seen heavy fighting, military and tribal sources said.
The explosion was the heaviest to hit Rada since the Huthis took over parts of the town last month, the military source said, adding that it was carried out by a suicide car bomber. Residents said the dawn bombing was felt across the whole town.
Both the military and tribal sources said dozens were killed, but a more accurate toll was not immediately available.
There was no immediate claim of responsibility for the attack.
At least 26 more Houthis were killed in attacks that targeted them in several areas around Rada since early Tuesday, tribal sources said. Al Qaeda claimed twin attacks at the weekend that it said killed dozens of Houthi fighters in Rada.
The rise of the Houthis has challenged the authority of President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi, an ally of the United States, and violence has continued despite UN-backed efforts to find a political solution.
The instability in Yemen, which lies next to key shipping routes from the Suez Canal to the Gulf, stems from the 2012 overthrow of longtime strongman Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has been accused of backing the Houthis. Saleh is a member of the Zaidi sect, an offshoot of Shia to which the Houthis belong.
Washington on Monday hit Saleh and two Houthi commanders with sanctions, accusing them of “engaging in acts that directly or indirectly threaten the peace, security, or stability of Yemen.”
The UN Security Council previously approved sanctions against the three men. A new cabinet, including members considered close to the Houthis, was sworn in on Sunday in a bid to resolve Yemen’s political crisis, despite calls for a boycott from both Saleh and the Shia militia.AFP
