Yemen militia stands defiant ahead of UN vote

SANAA / RIYADH: Houthi Shia militiamen who recently seized power in Yemen vowed to defy “threats” as the UN Security Council prepared to adopt a resolution on Sunday calling on them to step aside or face consequences.

Yemen’s Gulf Arab neighbors are warning that if the world fails to act against the rebels, the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council will take necessary action to maintain its security and stability. The Arab League will meet on Wednesday to discuss Yemen.

Yemen is a traditional US ally in its fight against Al-Qaeda, but the Peninsula country descended into chaos after the capital Sanna was overrun in September.

Another city they captured last year, Ibb, in central Yemen, was the scene of violence on Sunday when Houthis fired live rounds to disperse hundreds of protesters, wounding several of them.

Following their seizure of Sanaa and Ibb, the militia ousted the government and dissolved parliament on February 6, tightening their grip after Western-backed president Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi resigned in protest at their advance.

UN secretary General Ban Ki-moon has warned Yemen is falling apart and called for Hadi’s reinstatement.

Citing security concerns, nine Arab and Western countries shuttered their embassies in Yemen last week and evacuated diplomats.

The UN is expected to adopt a resolution calling on the militia to withdraw their forces from government and security institutions “immediately and unconditionally”. It also urges the Houthis to “engage in good faith in the UN-brokered negotiations” led by special envoy Jamal Benomar and to release Hadi, his prime minister Khalid Bahah, as well as other officials and activists under de facto house arrest or in detention.

According to Western diplomats, Russia, which is already under US and European sanctions over annexation of Crimea and backing of rebels in Ukraine, was reluctant to vote for sanctions.