Houthi militia inched closer Sunday to capturing the port city of Aden, where Saudi-backed forces loyal to Yemeni President Abdel Rabbo Mansour Hadi continue to hold out.
The Shi‘ite rebels unleashed artillery barrages on residential areas in the city and targeted a pro-Hadi television station with mortar rounds, forcing it off the air, reports AFP.
“There are bodies in the streets, and we can’t get close because there are Houthi snipers on the rooftops. Anything that gets near, they shoot at,” an unidentified medic told Reuters.
Houthi militants continue to consolidate control over large swaths of Yemen, despite 11 days of air strikes from a Saudi-led coalition of Gulf Arab states.
The Houthi assault on one of President Hadi’s last remaining strongholds comes as more than a hundred members of a Sunni Islamist political party were rounded up by Shi‘ite militiamen on Sunday.
Yemen’s Tumultuous History in 12 Pictures
In 1962, a coup ousted the monarchy ruling North Yemen and spawned a devastating civil war between the newly established Yemen Arab Republic and royalist forces. The conflict, which drew Egypt in on the side of the republicans against the Saudi-backed royalists, lasted through the end of the decadeGery Gerard—Paris Match/Getty ImagesAs conflict raged in the north, leftist groups in the south began to push for independence from Britain, which had controlled the port city of Aden and its surroundings since the mid-19th century. A grenade attack on British officers in December 1963 marked the beginning of an insurgency against the British known as the Aden EmergencyTerry Fincher—Getty ImagesUnder siege from pro-independence groups, the British agreed to a transfer of power and withdrew in 1967, paving the way for the communist-run People’s Republic of South YemenAPNorth and South Yemen finally overcame internal turmoil and occasional border clashes to agree on a unity deal in 1989. The merger the following year established the Republic of Yemen under the North’s President Ali Abdullah Saleh (right), who would remain in power until 2012 .Thomas Hartwell—The LIFE Images Collection/Getty ImagesPeace between both sides would not hold. In 1993, Vice President al-Bayd left Sana’a for Aden in the south, and by the following year the two sides’ armed forces, which had yet to be merged, were at war. The North eventually defeated southern forces, restoring calm after months of violence that left thousands deadLaurent Van Der Stockt—Getty ImagesA suicide bomb attack on the USS Cole in Aden, Yemen killed 17 U.S. sailors on Oct. 12, 2000, and was claimed by Al-Qaeda. Despite President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s pledge to support America's fight on terrorism, the group would eventually gain a strong foothold in the country. Today, Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula is one of the terror network's most powerful affiliates and controls swathes of territory in southern YemenU.S. Navy—Getty ImagesLarge-scale anti-government protests broke out in Jan. 2011 across the country in the wake of the ouster of Tunisian President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, eventually prompting President Ali Abdullah Saleh to declare that he would not run for reelection in 2013ReutersSnowballing demonstrations turned deadly on March 18, 2011 when unidentified gunmen opened fire on protesters, killing roughly 50 people. President Ali Abdullah Saleh, denying the attackers were government forces, declared a state of emergency, heralding a new, more violent phase in the protests that devolved at times into tribal clashesMuhammed Muheisen—APAn explosion at the presidential palace on June 3, 2011, badly burned President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who left for Saudi Arabia for treatment but, to the dismay of opposition activists, returned to Sana'a in September Muhammed Muheisen—APThe embattled President Ali Abdullah Saleh resigned on Feb. 27, 2012, after agreeing to an internationally-brokered deal to transition power to his deputy Abd-Rabbo Mansour HadiHani Mohammed—APThe Houthis, an insurgency comprising members of the Shi’ite Zaidi minority, took control of Sana'a on Sept. 21, 2014, after years of clashes with government forces in the north. The group, which allowed President Abd-Rabbo Mansour Hadi to remain at his post, gained wider traction as self-proclaimed reformers, capitalizing on dissatisfaction with the poor economic and security situations under Hadi’s U.S.-backed governmentMohammed Hamoud—Anadolu Agency/Getty ImagesPresident Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi submitted his resignation on Jan. 22 after negotiations on a power-sharing agreement with the Houthis appeared to fall through, leaving the fate of the country unclearEPA
Meanwhile, the International Committee of the Red Cross has called for the immediate imposition of a 24-hour cease-fire across Yemen to allow for the evacuation of the wounded to prevent further loss of life.
“Our relief supplies and surgical personnel must be allowed to enter the country and safely reach the worst-affected places to provide help,” said Robert Mardini, head of the ICRC’s operations in the Middle East, in a statement. “Otherwise, put starkly, many more people will die. For the wounded, their chances of survival depend on action within hours, not days.”
Health officials in Aden claim that at least 185 people have been killed and 1,282 injured in the city since March 26, reports the BBC. However, the figure does not include rebel casualties or residents killed by air strikes.
Last week, U.N. Emergency Relief Coordinator Valerie Amos called on both sides to do more to protect civilians trapped in the middle of the conflict.
“Those engaged in fighting must ensure that hospitals, schools, camps for refugees and those internally displaced and civilian infrastructure, especially in populated areas, are not targeted or used for military purposes,” said Amos.
