Yemen rebels detain dozens of student demonstrators in Sanaa crackdown

Yemeni rebels yesterday detained dozens of students protesting in the capital Sanaa against poverty in the war-torn country.

Local activists, asking not to be identified, said that the Houthi movement detained at least 55 students, including 18 women, near Sanaa University.

Houthi militants warned the students they would “beat and arrest” anyone taking part in demonstrations in the rebel-held capital, residents said, after activists called for a mass protest against inflation and famine.

The rebels yesterday said that they arrested a “number of people” in the city for disturbing the peace.

Those detained are linked to pro-government forces and “were paid to spread rumours and destabilise security”, the Houthi-run Saba news agency reported.

Witnesses said that the detained men and women were chanting: “We will sacrifice our soul, our blood for you, Yemen.”

The students were taken to a nearby Houthi-run police station, after which they were transported to “unknown locations”.

Activists said the rebels closed the university as part of the crackdown.

Houthi authorities also tightened security across the city, activists and witnesses said.

Since 2014, the Iran-aligned rebels have fought the government of exiled President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi, which is backed by a Saudi-led military coalition that includes the UAE.

The Yemen war triggered what the UN calls the world’s largest single humanitarian crisis, with more than three quarters of the population in need of aid and 8.4 million people at risk of famine.

Almost 10,000 people have been killed since the conflict began in 2015.

Witnesses said the detained men and women were chanting: ‘We will sacrifice our soul, our blood for you, Yemen’