Yemen rejects Zaidi rebel truce pitch, boosts assault

UN agencies alarmed over unfolding humanitarian crisis

Yemen’s army intensified a three-week-old offensive against Zaidi rebels in the north on Tuesday after security chiefs rejected the rebels’ truce offer, while the UN aid agencies warned of an unfolding humanitarian crisis in Sadaa city. War planes conducted several aerial strikes on rebel positions in the rugged mountainous city of Saada close to the presidential palace, military officials said on Tuesday.

The military has launched the second phase of its operation “Scorched Earth” in the Harf Sufyan region in an attempt to reopen the road between the Yemeni capital Sanaa and Saada that has been severed by the rebels for three weeks, the officials said.

The army was backed by “Giant,” elite units engaging in battle with the rebels, according to the officials.

The intensification of the campaign comes after the Zaidis, led by Abdel-Malek al-Huthi and accused by the authorities of being backed by Iran, offered the government a truce, which the authorities rejected.

“The so-called ceasefire initiative announced recently by the rebels offers nothing new,” said a spokesman for Yemen’s high-security commission, which is supervising the military operation.

The unidentified spokesman, quoted by the official Saba news agency, was referring to a rebel offer which local media said ignored Sanaa’s conditions for an end to the army operation launched on August 11.

“The rebels must commit themselves to respecting the six points announced by the high security commission,” added the spokesman, making clear there was no question of a halt to the offensive.

Among Sanaa’s demands are the pullout of rebels from official buildings, the reopening of roads in the north, and the return of weapons seized from security services. The rebels have already rejected the demands.

There is no official figure of casualties in the conflict.

An offshoot of Shiite Islam, the Zaidis – also known as Huthis – are a minority in mainly Sunni Yemen but form the majority community in the north and want to re-establish the imamate which was overthrown in a 1962 coup.

Thousands of people have been killed since the conflict first erupted in 2004.

Last week, Yemen’s President Ali Abdullah Saleh said the army needed several more weeks to crush the rebellion.

Meanwhile, the UN warned of a humanitarian crisis in Saada city, where 35,000 have fled in the past three weeks.

“A humanitarian crisis is unfolding in Saada city where the situation is deteriorating by the day,” said Andrej Mahecic, spokesman for the UN Refu­gees Agency.

Opening humanitarian corridors was “a top priority” for the UN as thousands continued to flee their homes in the Saada region near the Saudi border, a spokesman for the UN High Commissioner for Refugees said on Tuesday.

“That would allow civilians to leave the conflict zone and humanitarian workers to deliver much needed humanitarian aid to thousands of displaced people in this remote part of the country,” Andrej Mahecic told reporters in Geneva.

Agence France Presse reported Tuesday that thousands of exiles who initially found refuge in Saudi Arabia had allegedly been sent back to Yemen.

The World Food Program was able to help 95,000 people in July but could only reach 10,000 in August, said spokeswoman Emilia Casella.

Meanwhile, local partners in Saada city had enough rations to feed 60,000 people for a month but could not distribute them because of the fighting.

“Access is really the most urgent issue,” said Casella, noting that attempts failed last week to negotiate safe passage for aid workers during a lull in fighting.

UN humanitarian chief John Holmes will ask donor countries Wednesday to provide the global body with more money to fund its aid efforts in Yemen.

Elisabeth Byrs, a spokeswoman for his office, said for the money to be spent effectively the UN needed guarantees that aid groups could have immediate and unimpeded access to Sadaa city, Al-Jawaf Province and other areas.