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Yemen Government in Limbo Amid Uncertainty Over President’s Resignation Yemen Calm but Confused After President’s Resignation
(about 3 hours later)
SANA, Yemen — The status of Yemen’s government remained unclear on Friday, one day after it collapsed in the face of a siege by opposition forces, with reports that Parliament might reject the president’s resignation when it meets on Sunday. SANA, Yemen — A full day after the president of Yemen and his entire government abruptly resigned, calm prevailed on the streets of the capital even while it remained unclear who was in charge of this country of 26 million.
Houthi militiamen who have surrounded the presidential palace all week appeared to be consolidating their control, patrolling Sana, the capital, in pickup trucks. But the mood in the streets was calm, even after Friday Prayer, which often leads to violence in Yemen. The Houthi militiamen who drove President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi to step down continued on Friday to surround the presidential palace and other key points and appeared to consolidate control, patrolling the streets in pickup trucks. By the end of the day, with no one challenging their authority, they parked their vehicles on street sides and rested casually with their Kalashnikovs hanging loosely off their shoulders.
The militia leaders did not immediately make any official claim that they were moving to fill the power vacuum left by the resignation of President Abdu Rabbu Mansour Hadi, although local news agencies reported that they were trying to form a presidential committee to govern the country. The militia leaders did not immediately make any official claim that they were moving to fill the power vacuum left by the president’s resignation, although local news agencies reported that they were trying to form a presidential committee to govern the country.
Mr. Hadi, along with his prime minister and cabinet members, stepped down suddenly on Thursday, saying they did not want to be a party to what Mr. Hadi’s supporters have called essentially a coup, after presidential guards were withdrawn and Mr. Haid was kept under what amounted to house arrest. Mr. Hadi, along with his prime minister and cabinet members, stepped down suddenly on Thursday, saying they did not want to be a party to what Mr. Hadi’s supporters have called essentially a coup, after presidential guards were withdrawn and Mr. Hadi was kept under what amounted to house arrest. In Sana, the capital, residents seemed to adopt a resigned, wait-and-see attitude.
In Sana, residents seemed to adopt a resigned, wait-and-see attitude. “People here are followers, not influencers,” Mohamed Saleh Al Sanabani, 48, said as he climbed back into his car after shopping for fresh vegetables. “It doesn’t matter what party comes to power, the question is: Are they thinking about the people, or are they only thinking of themselves?”
“We’ve tried Ali Abdullah Saleh,” said Fouad al-Daisi, the imam of a mosque, referring to the Yemeni president ousted in 2011. “We’ve tried President Hadi. Everyone else who ruled has failed miserably. Maybe we should try the Houthis.” Even by the standards of Yemen, where violence, uncertainty and a weak central government are endemic, the power vacuum has produced a serious crisis that threatens to tear the country apart, allow a resurgent Qaeda room to expand and accelerate a sectarian conflict between the Houthis, who are a Shiite sect, and Sunni tribes and militants. It also may undermine the United States’ antiterrorism operations in the region, since the ousted president was an ally of Washington.
Mr. Daisi’s mosque was festooned in the green decorations of the Houthis, who are closely associated with Shiite Islam. Still, the mood here remained calm, almost festive at times, as hundreds of Houthi supporters — bitter opponents of Al Qaeda — gathered in the district of Al Juras, their main stronghold in the capital, to condemn the caricatures of the Prophet Muhammad that were published in the French satirical newspaper Charlie Hebdo. It was the local Qaeda franchise that claimed credit for planning the attacks at the newspaper and a kosher market that left 17 dead in Paris this month.
Fighting set off by the Houthi siege of the presidential palace this week, which made Mr. Hadi a virtual prisoner of the militants, claimed 18 lives and left 96 people wounded, Mohamed Naji, a Sana municipal official, was quoted as saying by Saba, the official news agency. “God is great, death to America, death to Israel, damnation to the Jews, victory to Islam, " scattered groups chanted as they strolled back to their cars.
That fighting and a collapsed agreement to resolve differences between Mr. Hadi’s government and the Houthis led to the government’s fall. Mr. Hadi was believed to be in his personal residence, with private guards, but there was no confirmation of that on Friday. At a mosque in the center of the city that was festooned in the green decorations of the Houthis, Fouad Al Daisi, an imam from the Zaydi sect of Shiite Islam, carefully crafted his Friday sermon to endorse the Houthis, without further inflaming sectarian divides.
Saba announced that the Parliament would convene on Sunday. News agencies said Houthi fighters had also encircled the Parliament building, but fighters stationed there, who seemed unperturbed, said they had already been outside the empty building for several days. “We are in desperate need of leadership,” Mr. Daisi said, without using the word Houthi or referring to Yemen’s president by name. “People are rebelling because our leaders don’t care about their daily needs. People are struggling to get electricity and gas. They get killed in the streets and nothing happens.”
A statement from the Houthi militia said Mr. Hadi’s resignation needed to be approved by a parliamentary majority before it was valid. “As this has not happened, the resignation remains pending,” the statement said. There was far more violence earlier in the week. The fighting set off by the Houthi siege of the presidential palace, which made Mr. Hadi a virtual prisoner of the militants, left 18 dead and 96 wounded, Mohamed Naji, a Sana municipal official, was quoted as saying by Saba, the official state news agency. That fighting and a collapsed agreement to resolve differences between Mr. Hadi’s government and the Houthis led to the government’s fall.
The statement may reflect the militants’ reluctance to assume complete power amid criticism of their actions by political leaders throughout the country, especially in the resource-rich east and south. Mr. Hadi was believed to be in his personal residence, with private guards, on Friday, but that could not be confirmed. Saba announced that the Parliament would convene on Sunday.
Some officials in southern Yemen warned of the risk of secession of those areas in response to a Houthi takeover. Until 1990, north and south Yemen were separate countries, and the Houthis, led by followers of the Zaydi sect of Shiite Islam, are based in northern Yemen. Two-thirds of Yemenis are Sunni Muslims. News agencies said Houthi fighters had also encircled the Parliament building, but fighters stationed there, who seemed unperturbed, said they had been outside the empty building for days. A statement from the Houthi militia said Mr. Hadi’s resignation needed to be approved by a parliamentary majority before it was valid. “As this has not happened, the resignation remains pending,” the statement said.
On Friday, a small protest was held at Change Square, the scene of huge demonstrations in 2011, during the Arab Spring uprisings, that helped topple the Saleh government. Demonstrators holding signs reading “No to Militias” and renouncing sectarianism. There was no violence, and only about 30 people attended. The statement may reflect the militants’ reluctance to assume complete power amid criticism of their actions by political leaders throughout the country, especially in the resource-rich east and south. Some officials in southern Yemen warned of the risk of secession in those areas if the Houthis were to take over. Until 1990, north and south Yemen were separate countries, and the Houthis, led by followers of the Zaydi sect, are based in northern Yemen. Two-thirds of Yemenis are Sunni Muslims.
On Friday, a small protest was held in Change Square, the scene of huge demonstrations during the 2011 Arab Spring uprisings that helped topple the longtime president, Ali Abdullah Saleh. Demonstrators on Friday held signs reading “No to Militias” and renouncing sectarianism. There was no violence, and only about 30 people attended.
“Yemen has been living without a real functioning state for a very long time,” said Farida Al Breemi, 52, who was leading the chants. “But it’s holding itself together through the customs and decency of its people.”“Yemen has been living without a real functioning state for a very long time,” said Farida Al Breemi, 52, who was leading the chants. “But it’s holding itself together through the customs and decency of its people.”