Shiite rebel leader among dozens killed in renewed Yemen clashes

SANAA, Yemen: Yemeni security forces killed a Shiite rebel leader in renewed clashes in the north of the mainly Sunni Muslim Arab country, in which dozens of troops and rebels also died, government sources said on Monday. Fighting in the Yemen’s north appeared to escalate Monday with the rebels claiming in statements to have made a number of advances, including taking control of several strategic areas in the northern Saada Province which borders Saudi Arabia.

The rebels also claimed to have launched Katyusha rockets on an army camp in Saada and promised more strikes in the future.

The rebels’ claims came after Yemen’s defense minister earlier in the day said a stepped-up counteroffensive by government troops had paralyzed the rebels’ movements and dealt them a severe blow.

A government official told Reuters that Hussein Kamza, who led rebels in the northern Amran Province loyal to Abdul-Malik al-Houthi of the Houthi tribal group, was killed during fighting on Sunday.

Fighting in Saada between Yemeni troops backed by fighter aircraft and Shiite rebels has killed dozens on both sides since the government launched a wide offensive against the rebels earlier this month after weeks of skirmishes.

Saada is also where the rebels kidnapped 15 local aid workers last week, according to the province’s governor.

Yemen on Thursday announced conditions for a ceasefire to end its offensive, but the rebels rejected the truce offer and denied holding any kidnapped civilians.

The province has been closed to journalists, and the reports could not be independently verified.

The current round of fighting that began last week marks a major escalation in the five-year-old conflict.

The Shiite rebels complain the government ignores their needs and has allowed Wahhabis – people adhering to an ultraconservative version of Sunni Islam found in Saudi Arabia – too strong of a voice in the country. The Wahhabis, who consider Shiites to be heretics, gained influence after helping the Yemeni government win the 1994 civil war with the secessionist south.

The Yemen government has portrayed the rebels as a fundamentalist religious group supported by Iran.

The stability of Yemen – the ancestral homeland of Osama bin Laden – is a key concern for both Saudi Arabia and the US who worry that the lawlessness there could provide cover for Al-Qaeda militants who have sought sanctuary in the impoverished nation.

Along with rampant lawlessness, Yemen is also struggling with a worsening economy as a result of falling oil prices.

Meanwhile, also on Monday, a delegation of US senators led by John McCain and the president of Yemen discussed ways to help the impoverished Arabian Peninsula country battle another threat the country faces – that of Al-Qaeda.

The state SABA news agency said the American team and Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh focused on “bilateral issues and fields of joint cooperation.” No details immediately emerged from the meeting, but McCain spokeswoman Brooke Buchanan confirmed earlier that the talks would include counterterrorism cooperation and Guantanamo detainees.

Yemen has been a professed US ally in the fight against terrorism but President Barack Obama has hesitated to send home the nearly 100 Yemeni inmates held at Guantanamo Bay prison because of Yemen’s history releasing extremists.

The country, which is the ancestral homeland of Osama bin Laden, has been the site of numerous high-profile, Al-Qaeda-linked attacks, including the 2000 bombing of the USS Cole in the Gulf of Aden, which killed 17 American sailors.

The US visit comes at a particularly difficult time for Yemen.

In addition to the Al-Qaeda threat and the escalating tribal Shiite rebellion in the Saada province, Saleh’s Sunni-led government is facing a vigorous southern secessionist movement.