SANAA: Yemeni officials say heavy street battles among armed Islamist factions aligned with the exiled government have left at least six people dead and families displaced.

They said on Saturday that the clashes, which erupted in Taiz a day earlier, saw a faction financed and armed by the United Arab Emirates and led by Salafi commander Aboul Abbas, confront other factions affiliated with the Muslim Brotherhood group in Yemen the Islah party which is loyal to Yemeni president Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. The violence in Taiz underscores the deep divisions marring allies in Yemen’s war which pits the internationally recognised government backed by a Saudi-led coalition against Iran-backed Shia rebels.

Saudi-led coalition launches raids

The Saudi-Led coalition in Yemen launched raids on Houthi camps in the capital Sanaa, including the Al-Dailami air base, Al-Arabiya TV reported on Saturday.

The US ambassador to Yemen blamed the Iran-aligned Houthi movement on Thursday for the hold-up to a UN-led peace deal in the main port of Hodeidah and said Houthi weapons pose a threat to other countries in the region.

The Saudi-led coalition backs the government of Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. The Houthis ousted Hadi’s government from power in Sanaa in late 2014.

Published in Dawn, March 24th, 2019