[wvns] Yemen: Thousands Flee Violence

Yemen army claims to kill 59 Shiite rebels:
Oct. 11, 2009
http://snipurl.com/sh8e6

The Yemeni army said on Monday it had "purged" pockets of resistance of Shiite rebels near the northern city of Saada, and killed 59 fighters in various operations.

A Yemeni soldier mans a machine gun from the roof of a building in the Saada province

A military spokesman quoted by the website of the defence ministry 26sep.net said that the operation in the city of Anad resulted in the deaths of 37 Zaidi Shiite rebels, who had been using the area as a launchpad for attacks against Saada.

Another five rebels were killed in clashes with the army, while seven others died when attempting an attack on the army in Jebel Samaa, near Saada, the spokesman said.

In Harf Sufyan in the Amran province, the army attacked a vehicle carrying rebels, killing 10 of them, the statement added.

It said on the other hand that seven teachers had been kidnapped by the rebels in Aal al-Waqis of Saqain district and were taken to unknown place.

The army statements could not be independently verified.

Fighting between government forces and the Zaidi rebels entered its third month on Sunday and there is no prospect for a ceasefire in sight.

Dozens of people have been killed or wounded and tens of thousands have been forced to flee their homes, resulting in a humanitarian crisis with a dire shortage of food and aid material.

The authorities accuse the rebels of being supported by groups in Iran and of seeking to reinstate a form of clerical rule that ended in republican coup in 1962. The rebels deny both claims.

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Yemen conflict strands refugees at Saudi border
By Ulf Laessing and Nael Shyoukhi
The Star, Malaysia
Oct. 12, 2009
http://snipurl.com/sh8eo

ALB, Yemen (Reuters) - After fleeing fighting in the mountains of north Yemen, Khalaf Abdullah Abdan must now rely on humanitarian aid to survive.

As the conflict between the army and Zaidi Shi'ite rebels intensifies and neighbouring Saudi Arabia keeps tight control on its border, he fears for the future as the winter approaches.

"We had to leave... They (the rebels) destroyed our houses. We ran away on foot," said the 35-year-old from Baqim some 20 km (12 miles ) to the south, the scene of heavy fighting.

Now home is a tent next to the Yemeni border post in Alb, the last village before Saudi Arabia where people have camped in tents, a mosque, schools or locals' houses.

Battles between the army and insurgents, who complain of political, economic and religious discrimination, have killed hundreds and displaced tens of thousands of people since war first broke out in 2004 -- but intensified in August.

On Sunday, the United Nations managed for the first time to bring from Saudi Arabia three trucks filled with tents and mattresses for 300 refugees.

"The situation is disastrous because of the war," said Abdul-Rahman al-Dhafer from the local aid group Amal, which is distributing U.N. aid in the rugged area.

Some 2,000 families are stranded in Mandiya further up the mountains, but only 200 of them have tents, he said.

"They're in need of basic services. We have an urgent need for health care, food, tents and mattresses, especially in this area which is cold, very cold," Dhafer said.

FIGHTING SHIFTS NORTH

Fighting has come closer to the north, pushing more refugees towards Saudi Arabia, a key ally of veteran ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh which fears Al Qaeda will exploit instability in Yemen to stage attacks in one of the world's biggest oil exporters.

"I think fighting is spreading out," said one U.N. official who did not want to be named. "The frontline is moving all the time. It's difficult to verify which areas are still controlled by the government."

Sandwiched between cliffs and mountains, Alb and other villages depend on one road from the Saudi border to Saada, the centre of the fighting, 90 km (56 miles) to the south. There is no hospital and the sound of shelling can be heard in the distance.

"The situation is very bad... At the moment we are just covering 300 families and there are hundreds more," said Sultan Khilji, protection officer of the first U.N. aid convoy.

Relief agencies estimate 150,000 people have been displaced in the conflict but with no access to the war zone they have no clear idea how many have fled. Yemen has barred journalists and diplomats from travelling independently to the northern provinces of Saada, Amran and Hajjeh.

Yemeni security officers tried to stop reporters from talking to refugees and filming, destroying TV footage and denying entry to a camp in Mandiya.

Many children and teenagers stroll around in dirty clothes.

"I came with my family from Baqim when rebels came with troops and fighting started," said 17-year-old Faris Mujahed, who has been here almost a month. "The school year has started but we cannot go to school."

"I don't know when I can go back. I now sleep in a mosque," said Misfir, a 18-year-old farmer.

Yemenis with Saudi residency drive north through the border every day to buy basic good such as rice, milk and water cheaply in Saudi Arabia then sell them at profit in Alb.

"Everything has become expensive," said Mohammed, a Yemeni in his 20s with Saudi residency. "My wife lives in a village over the border so I go regularly to get supplies," he said, while waiting for Saudi officials to check his passport.

"They buy up everything here. Tents have been sold out," said a Saudi customs official.

(Editing by Andrew Hammond and Samia Nakhoul)

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U.N. urges truce in Yemen fighting to deliver aid
By Mohamed Sudam
Monday October 12, 2009
http://thestar.com.my/news/story.asp?file=/2009/10/12/worldupdates/2009-10-12t000000z_01_nootr_rtrmdnc_0_india-430829-2&sec=worldupdates

SANAA (Reuters) - Yemen's government and Shi'ite rebels in the north should suspend fighting to allow the United Nations to deliver aid to refugees, a top U.N. official said on Sunday after a delayed aid convoy arrived from Saudi Arabia.

U.N. Emergency Relief Coordinator John Holmes told reporters he had asked for a "ceasefire ... on humanitarian" grounds during a meeting with Yemeni officials in the Arabian Peninsula country, one of the world's poorest nations outside Africa.

Aid agencies are warning of a humanitarian crisis in northern Yemen, where up to an estimated 150,000 people have fled their homes since Shi'ite rebels launched the insurgency in 2004. Limited access to the war zone means they have no clear idea of exactly how many have fled.

Zaydi Shi'ite Muslim rebels say they suffer religious discrimination by Sunni hardliners who have gained ground due to President Ali Abdullah Saleh's close ties to Saudi Arabia which adheres to a puritanical form of Sunni Islam.

The United States and Saudi Arabia fear the fighting in northern Yemen, and street clashes with separatists in the south, could create instability that al Qaeda could exploit to attack Saudi Arabia.

The U.N. convoy, delayed by fighting between the rebels and government forces, crossed into Yemen from Saudi on Sunday.

The three-truck convoy carried 200 tents, blankets and mattresses to about 300 refugees stranded in the Yemeni province of Saada which has seen heavy fighting since the army launched a major offensive on Aug. 11.

"We hope to have more convoys," said Sultan Khilji, the convoy's U.N. protection officer, adding that up to 5,000 people were stranded in the northern border region.

Holmes urged both sides of the conflict to avoid harming civilians and uphold the rights of people in the conflict area.

The U.N. refugee agency said on Friday it would send aid to northern Yemen from Saudi Arabia for the first time but the convoy had been delayed for security clearance.

It crossed the frontier at Alb, about 20 km (12 miles) north of the area of Baqim, the scene of fierce clashes.

Zaydis make up about a third of Yemen's population of about 23 million people. The majority of Yemenis are Sunni Muslims.

(Additional reporting by Ulf Laessing and Mohamed Ghobari; Editing by Alison Williams)

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