Yemeni rebel leader warns of escalation
SAN'A, Yemen (AP) — A Shiite rebel leader in Yemen warned Sunday that his group will escalate its fight against the government if the army continues an offensive that has left almost 20 rebels and soldiers dead over the past two days.
Six rebels and six soldiers were killed in clashes overnight Sunday in and around the mountainous rebel stronghold of Saada in northern Yemen, according to a security official and an eyewitness. A day earlier, three soldiers and four rebels were killed in similar clashes.
Thousands have died in violence between the rebels and the government of this predominantly Sunni country since the rebellion erupted in 2004.
On Friday, a bomb rigged to a motorcycle blew up amid a crowd of worshippers leaving a Shiite mosque in Saada, killing at least 18 people and wounding about four dozen, according to officials. Both sides blamed each other for the attack.
Rebel leader Abdel Malak al-Hawthi told The Associated Press on Sunday that tribal chiefs have stepped in to mediate a new cease-fire, but warned that his group would escalate fighting "if the government insists on the option of war."
"New fronts will be opened, not in Saada, not in north Yemen, but all over Yemen," said al-Hawthi. "We have the potential for that."
The Shiite fighters signed two cease-fire agreements with the government in June 2007 and January of this year, but sporadic violence continues.
The rebels say the government is corrupt and too closely allied with the West. The government has charged al-Hawthi with sedition, forming an illegal armed group and inciting anti-American sentiment.
Many officials in Sunni-led Saudi Arabia and in Yemen's government suspect Iran and Libya support al-Hawthi. Sunni governments in the region suspect Shiite Iran is trying to increase its influence by supporting Shiite groups like the militias in Iraq and Hezbollah in Lebanon.
Al-Hawthi denies that his group, known as the Young Faithful, receives funds from Iran.
Yemen is a key U.S. ally in the Middle East, but al-Qaida loyalists are active in the country.
