Yemeni Shiite rebels demand their militia join army, police

SANAA — Yemen's Shiite rebels, who control the capital, Sanaa, are demanding their militia becomes part of the country's army and police force as a precondition for talks on releasing the nation's president and Cabinet members from house arrest, a senior politician said Monday.

The demand is the latest in the power grab by the rebels — who descended from their northern stronghold into Sanaa in September and took over key state institutions and military facilities.

The demand, along with other conditions put forth by the rebels, known as Houthis, could thwart UN efforts to find a negotiated solution to the crisis in Yemen.

The impoverished Arabian Peninsula country, which is also home to a formidable Al Qaeda affiliate, has been leaderless since President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi submitted his resignation last month after the Houthis besieged his home and pressured him for a greater share of power.

On Monday, Abdullah Noaman told The Associated Press that his Nasserite Party pulled out of UN-brokered talks the day before, after the Houthis demanded that their 20,000-strong militia join the country’s military and security forces as a precondition to any kind of deal.

He accused the Houthis of using the talks as “political cover to complete their coup”.

On Sunday, the Houthis gave Yemen’s political factions a three-day ultimatum to reach an agreement, warning they would take over if no agreement was reached.

The Houthis’ expansionist aspirations raised fears that Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, considered the terror group’s most dangerous branch, would benefit from fallout among disgruntled Sunni tribes. The loss of Hadi, a strong US ally in the war against terrorism, has been also a concern in Washington.

However, US drone strikes resumed even with the Houthis consolidating their grip on the capital and the resignation of Hadi; US officials insist that the drone strikes will continue despite the political turmoil.

In what appeared to be another attack on Al Qaeda, tribal officials and witnesses say that a US drone strike targeted a moving vehicle loaded with weapons and explosives on Monday in the central province of Bayda.

The strike caused a large explosion and a number of people were killed in the vehicle, tribal leaders and witnesses said.

It was not immediately clear how many among the slain men were Al Qaeda members. If confirmed, it will be the third strike against Al Qaeda members by a US drone in 2015.