Dozens dead in Yemen as advancing Shiite rebels fight Sunnis

Shiite rebels sweeping across Yemen met deadly resistance from both Sunni tribesmen and Al-Qaeda Saturday as they pushed south into mainly Sunni areas with the security forces largely absent. In predominantly Sunni Ibb province, the rebels lost 12 fighters to an ambush in a second straight day of clashes with Sunni tribesmen, medics and local officials said. In mixed Sunni-Shiite Rada further east, they withdrew just hours after entering the town, following twin suicide bombings and rocket-propelled grenade fire by Al-Qaeda, tribal sources said.

We will take all necessary measures to restore security and stability.

Ibb governor Yehya al-Iryani

The rebels took control of the capital Sanaa on September 21 after orchestrating weeks of protests that paralysed the government. They then pushed south earlier this week, meeting little or no resistance from security forces. But as their advance has taken them out of the mainly Shiite northern highlands into predominantly Sunni areas, they have met increasingly fierce resistance from local tribes as well as the Sunni extremists of Al-Qaeda. During the night, hundreds of armed tribesmen surrounded Ibb, laying siege to the rebels inside the city, witnesses said. Saturday’s clashes came as the rebels tried to send reinforcements from Shiite areas further north.

Middle East Yemen