1000s of Houthis stage massive rally in Sana’a

Tens of thousands of Shia Houthis and their supporters in the Yemeni capital, Sana’a, have held a mass rally, demanding that the government step down.

Yemeni government sources say Hawthi demonstrators used tires and cement blocks to divert traffic from main roads in Sana’a on Wednesday.

Reports say Yemeni tanks were positioned in front of the parliament and TV buildings.

Houthis and their supporters have held daily protests across Yemen over the past weeks, demanding the government step down.

The Yemeni army and security forces have on numerous occasions used force against the protests. But the crackdown has so far failed to end the unrest.

The latest protest rally was held despite the government’s recent concessions.

On Tuesday, President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi dismissed Prime Minister Mohammed Salim Basindawa and his ministers in a bid to end an ongoing standoff with the Shia Houthi protesters. Hadi has also partially reversed an earlier decision to lift fuel subsidies.

However, senior Houthi leaders in Yemen have strongly dismissed a series of proposals put forward by the embattled president.

Houthi leader Sheikh Sayyid Abdul-Malik al-Houthi has recently called for civil disobedience and expansion of protest rallies against the government.

Houthis have been holding demonstrations since August 20 when they strengthened their positions in the Yemeni capital in an effort to press the government to quit.

They accuse the government of corruption and marginalizing the Shia community.

The Houthi movement played a key role in the popular revolution that forced former dictator, Ali Abdullah Saleh, to step down in February 2012.