Yemen sends envoy to end crisis

The Yemeni government has sent an envoy to the northern part of the country for talks with Houthis amid ongoing anti-government protests.

The new envoy was dispatched with the aim of ending two weeks of mass protests calling for the resignation of the government.

The move by the Yemeni government is seen by political experts as a last-ditch attempt to end the current crisis.

The protests continued on Monday, with tens of thousands of anti-government demonstrators marching in the capital Sana’a.

Sheikh Sayyid Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, a leader of Shia Houthi fighters in Yemen, said late on Sunday that a campaign of civil disobedience would begin on Monday, “but it will not be about closing stores or groceries … it will be a different kind.”

“If our demands are not met there will be decisive measures that we will talk about in time,” he added.
Houthis have been holding demonstrations since August 20 when they strengthened their positions in Sana’a.

The Shia movement and its supporters are demanding the resignation of the government and the reversal of recent increases in fuel prices. In response, the government has only offered a cabinet reshuffle and minor reforms.

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

The movement draws its name from the tribe of its founding leader Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi.

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

Saleh, who ruled Yemen for 33 years, stepped down in February 2012 under a US-backed power transfer deal in return for immunity, after a year of mass street demonstrations demanding his ouster.