13 killed in clashes between army, Shiite rebels in NE Yemen
SANAA, Feb. 28 (Xinhua) -- Clashes erupted on Friday between the Yemeni army and Shiite Houthi rebels in Yemen's northeastern province of al-Jawf, leaving at least 13 people dead and several others wounded, tribal sources said.
The fighting took place after the Shiite rebels tried to seize the government's main facilities in al-Hazm, the capital city of al-Jawf province, a local tribal source told Xinhua anonymously.
"Three soldiers and more than 10 Shiite rebels were killed in the fighting," the source said.
However, Ali al-Bukhaity, the spokesman of the Houthi group in capital Sanaa, denied that his group was seeking to seize the government installations. He told Xinhua that the fighting broke out after the group concluded a peaceful demonstration on Friday morning in al-Hazm, demanding the resignation of the coalition government.
He said after the demonstration, the Houthi group had disputes with Sunni soldiers at a checkpoint in the city, which led to the exchange of gunfire.
He added that the situation has returned to calm. The government has not yet commented on the clashes.
Sectarian conflicts have been expanding in Yemen's northern provinces since the eruption of protests against former President Ali Abdullah Saleh in 2011.
Houthi rebels and their rival Sunnis had participated in a UN- backed national dialogue, which concluded last month. The Yemeni parties agreed to reshuffle the cabinet, draft a new constitution, form a federal state and prepare for holding presidential elections.
The sectarian conflicts intensified in October 2013 as clashes in Dammaj in Saada province left more than 850 people dead.
The government brokered a ceasefire agreement in January this year between the rival groups and evacuated around 15,000 Sunni families from Dammaj town.
Shiite rebels have controlled the northern Saada province since they signed a ceasefire deal with the government in August 2010, which ended a six-year intermittent war.
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