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Thu, 10:49 18 Sep 2008 GMT17

 
Yemen clashes

Last reviewed: 30-05-2008

NORTHERN MOUNTAIN REBELLION


Hundreds have died since Yemen's Sunni-dominated government started a crackdown in January 2007 on rebels in the north it says are seeking to oust its secular administration and install Islamist rule.

  • Thousands uprooted
  • High malnutrition rates
  • Guns everywhere

    Rebels led by Abdul-Malik Al-Houthi say they are defending their villages in the remote northern mountainous Saada province against government aggression. Conflict between Houthis and the government has raged on and off since 2004.

    Thousands of people have fled their homes, including families from Yemen's tiny but ancient Arabic-speaking Jewish community, and towns have come under siege.

    But residents have started returning since a June 2007 ceasefire, which committed Yemen to reconstruction in rebel areas, required rebels to hand in heavy weapons and included a temporary exile for their leaders.

    Outsiders' access to the region - where relief convoys have been attacked - is severely restricted, and journalists say it's hard even to get through by telephone.

    The government says the Houthis, members of the Zaydi sect of Shi'ite Islam, preach violence against the United States. The rebels are not linked to al Qaeda, which follows a strict brand of Sunni Islam.

    Sunni Muslims - who dominate in government - make up most of Yemen's 19 million population, and most of the rest are Zaydis, the closest Shi'ite sect to mainstream Sunni Islam.

    Yemen is awash with weapons, with some reports saying there are between 40 million and 50 million guns in the country. The Yemeni government has clamped down on markets selling guns, ammunition and firework, but parliament has stopped short of regulating the possession of arms.

    Aid agencies say malnutrition rates are high among displaced families and could go higher without adequate food aid. The fighting has led to food shortages in markets and hit farm output.


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    Smoke is seen billowing outside the U.S. embassy in Sanaa September 17, 2008. Two suicide car bombs set off a series of explosions outside the heavily fortified U.S. embassy in Yemen ...


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