Yemen’s Hadi flees palace as Houthis advance on Aden

The Shiite rebels arrested the president's defence minister and his top military commander in Lahj province and have taken them to the capital Sanaa where they say the men will be put on trial.

Residents of Aden run towards a weapons depot to take up arms in preparation for a potential advance on the southern Yemeni city by Houthi Shiite militia and their allies on March 25, 2015. Saleh Al Obeidi/AFP PhotoShow less

SANAA // Yemen’s president Abdrabu Mansur Hadi abandoned his palace in Aden on Wednesday as Houthi rebels bore down on his southern stronghold and captured the defence minister.

A presidential aide denied Houthi claims that Mr Hadi had fled to Saudi Arabia, saying he moved to a secure location within Aden.

Mr Hadi left his palace hours after the rebels announced the capture of Al Annad airbase, 60 kilometres from Aden, and offered a bounty of US$93,000 (Dh341,589) for the president’s capture on state television. Pro-Hadi fighters had taken over the airbase after the United States withdrew its forces from the site at the weekend, citing the country’s deteriorating security situation.

Several embassies that were moved to Aden after Mr Hadi fled to the city from Sanaa last month were also evacuated after news of the airbase’s capture, Houthi spokesman Mohammed Al Bukhaiti said.

The Houthis and their allied forces, which include sections of the military and loyalists of the former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, arrested Mr Hadi’s defence minister, General Mahmud Al Subaihi, and his top military commander, Faisal Rajab, in Lahj province.

The men were taken to Sanaa and will be put on trial, said Mohammed AbdulSalam, another Houthi spokesman.

Officials in Aden said the Houthis conducted three air strikes on the presidential compound before learning that Mr Hadi had already left.

The military’s special forces loyal to the Houthis then took control of Aden’s airport and the city’s branch of the central bank.

Faced with increasing Houthi gains, Mr Hadi’s foreign minister Riad Yassin said on Wednesday that he had asked the Arab League to send a military force to intervene against the Houthis.

Mr Hadi on Tuesday asked the UN Security Council to authorise a military intervention “to protect Yemen and to deter the Houthi aggression” in Aden and the rest of the south. In his letter, Mr Hadi said he had also asked members of the GCC and the Arab League for immediate help.

GCC leaders at the weekend expressed full support for Mr Hadi and called for a resolution of Yemen’s crisis to be dicusussed at a meeting in Riyadh.

Houthi military commanders told The National that Saudi Arabia was increasing its military presence along the border with Yemen, spreading thousands of its troops over the 600 kilometres extending from the Yemeni provinces of Saada, Hajjah and Al Jawf. At some points the Saudi troops were close enough to be seen from the Yemeni side of the border, a Houthi official said.

Saudi Arabia warned on Monday that “if the Houthi coup does not end peacefully, we will take the necessary measures for this crisis to protect the region”.

Abu Ahmed Al Shami, a senior Houthi commander said, “Saudi Arabia wants a weak and obedient Yemen. That era is over and Yemen will not allow Saudi to interfere in its affairs and spur chaos.” He dismissed the possibility of a Saudi military intervention in Yemen, saying Riyadh would not want to give the Houthis a reason to invade its territory as it did in 2009.

Abdullah Al Rahabi, a political analyst for the Sanaa-based Khubara Foundation think tank said Mr Hadi’s Gulf allies had reacted very slowly to developments on the ground while Iran and the Houthis were decisive.

“By the time the Houthis are in control of a new area, the Saudis [have only] just finished planning [rather than implementing these plans on the ground], which is too late,” said Mr Al Rahabi.

“Even if a solution is reached through negotiations, it’s already a given: a proxy war between Saudi and Iran will take place in Yemen, sooner or later,” he said.

The Houthis have said their push into the southern provinces is aimed at fighting Al Qaeda. It follows the killing of more than 150 of its supporters in suicide bombings during Friday prayers in Sanaa last week. Hundreds more were injured in the attack, which was claimed by ISIL.

The Houthis, who follow the Zaidi sect of Islam, took over Sanaa in January after attacking the presidential palace and ministerial cabinet, placing both president Hadi and prime minister Khaled Bahah under house arrest. Both leaders resigned their posts, after which the Houthis issued a “constitutional declaration”, assigning an interim government. Mr Hadi escaped last month and withdrew his resignation after fleeing to Aden. His defence minister escaped shortly afterwards.

The Houthis launched their southern offensive on Tuesday, entering through Thale province, where top military commanders have long been allies of former president Saleh. The head of military brigade 33 in Dhale, Commander Mohammed Thaba’an, handed charge to the Houthis with little resistance. The rebels then took over the Laboza military base in Lahj province, located just 15 minutes from Al Annad airbase.

In Taez province, which the Houthis entered on Sunday, eight protesters were killed and more than 50 injured on Tuesday as they demanded the removal of militant checkpoints, the protest organisers said. Political parties condemned the attack and called for more protests.

“The province of Taez does not accept militants and the governor is aware of that and is talking on behalf of Taez,” said Ali Al Jaradi, an Islah party official. “Government forces are present and are responsible for checkpoints and security, not militants.”

“Taez has always been politically stable and safe. The spread of militants will anger the people and only result in continuous unrest in a province that wants to avoid the political war the Houthis are forcing them to be involved in,” he added.

Hours after the shootings, the Taez governor, Shawqi Hael, resigned in protest.

Battles with the Houthis have not been limited to the south, with clashes between the Shiite militiamen and Sunni tribes continuing for the fourth consecutive day on the border between the oil and gas rich Marib province with Al Bayda. At least 45 people have been killed so far, 28 of them Houthi militants, according to local security officials. But the Marib tribes of Murad halted the Houthi advance, also burning three of their vehicles.

* With additional reporting from Associated Press and Reuters