SANAA // Yemen’s president has offered to appoint a new prime minister within 48 hours under a potential deal with Shiite rebels in return for ending their protests.
A spokesman for the rebels, whose protests have raised fears of worsening unrest in the country, said they were considering the offer.
“An accord was reached... late on Wednesday” to end the country’s latest political impasse, by which “a new prime minister will be named within 48 hours” and fuel prices will be further cut, a presidency source said.
Another person said it was an “understanding over an agreement that will be finalised by [UN envoy Jamal] Benomar” who arrived in Sanaa earlier on Thursday.
GCC envoy Saleh Al Qunayeer had also arrived in the country “to back efforts aimed at easing tensions”, a GCC statement said.
President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi promised earlier this month to name a new prime minister but the initiative was rejected by the Houthi rebels.
The Houthis, also known as Ansarullah, had been demanding that Mr Hadi consult them before naming a new prime minister. Under the draft deal, the rebels are to “dismantle their protest camps and pull their armed men” from Sanaa and its surroundings.
Shiite Houthi activists launched their protest campaign in late July after the government announced a hike in fuel prices.
They set up camps in Sanaa on August 18 and this week escalated their movement, clashing with police on Sunday after closing down the main road leading to Sanaa airport as well as the ministries of electricity and telecommunications.
On Tuesday, hundreds tried to storm the government headquarters, sparking clashes with police that killed nine protesters and a paramedic.
Under the latest agreement, the increase will be cut in half – after a 30 per cent decrease took effect last week.
A Houthi spokesman said that “there are proposals to resolve the crisis that are still being considered”, but there are no conclusions yet.
Sunni-majority Yemen has been locked in a protracted transition since long-time president Ali Abdullah Saleh was forced from power in February 2012 after a deadly 11-month uprising.
Analysts say the rebels are trying to establish themselves as the top political force in the northern highlands, where Shiites are the majority.
The International Crisis Group warned Monday that “Yemen’s troubled transition is at a crossroads more dangerous than any since 2011.”
* Agence France-Presse
