Thursday, January 22, 2015

Yemen President Resigns Under Pressure From Abductors

The Associated Press seems too circumspect in their choice of suggested headline so we made our own.
From the AP via the Houston Chronicle:
SANAA, Yemen (AP) — Yemen's president resigned on Thursday under pressure from Shiite rebels who seized the capital in September and have confined the embattled leader to his home for the past two days.

Presidential officials said Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, a close U.S. ally in the fight against Yemen's powerful al-Qaida affiliate, submitted his resignation to parliament after being pressured to make further concessions to the rebels, known as Houthis, who are widely believed to be backed by Iran, charges they deny.

Hadi had earlier pledged political concessions in return for the rebels withdrawing from his house and the nearby presidential palace following days of clashes, but Houthi fighters remained deployed around both buildings throughout Thursday....MORE

Possibly related, our October 5 post: News You May Have Missed While Living Your Life: "Al Houthi rebels: Yemen’s new masters"

And from the Yemen Times Feb. 1: Oil: "Why the great Sunni-Shia conflict is getting ever closer to the surface"