UN warns Yemen faces rising sectarian tension

AFP/SanaaThe UN envoy to Yemen yesterday urged political rivals there to form a new government within days to head off rising “sectarian tensions” in the violence-hit country. In an interview with AFP, Jamal Benomar called for a new line-up to be formed “within a few days”, after weeks of clashes pitting Sunni tribes and Al Qaeda against Shia rebels seeking to expand their territory. “Recent developments have brought on a new discourse that is xenophobic, sometimes sectarian, and this is a worrying trend,” Benomar said from Sanaa. “This didn’t happen in the past... The only way forward is for all sides to co-operate to establish a new government and to move forward the implementation of the peace partnership agreement” reached on September 21. “Failure to pursue this would mean an increase in sectarian tensions” between Sunnis and Shias, he warned. Chaos in the impoverished nation was compounded when Ansarullah fighters seized Sanaa in September and later expanded their sphere of influence into central and west Yemen. On Friday, Ansarullah increased pressure on President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi by giving him 10 days to form a new government or face the creation of a “national salvation council”. On Saturday, the rebels and their political rivals signed a deal—in Benomar’s presence—mandating Hadi and Prime Minister Khalid Bahah to form a government and agreeing to support it. Benomar acknowledged that “the new government is going to be facing a very daunting, complex challenge”, highlighted by the country’s “very dire” economic situation. “Serious economic problems are emerging,” he said. “It is not very clear whether the state would be able to continue to pay its civil servants after the end of the year.” The rebels took control of Sanaa after orchestrating weeks of protests over a hike in fuel prices, which was later largely scrapped, and over corruption. They met with almost no resistance from the security forces as they overran the capital and other major cities farther south. The rebels’ Zaidi sect, an offshoot of Shia Islam, makes up approximately a third of Sunni-majority Yemen’s population. Apart from the October 13 appointment of Bahah as premier, the September 21 peace deal with the rebels has remained a dead letter. Under the UN-sponsored accord, the rebels were to withdraw from Sanaa and disarm once a neutral prime minister was named. “This agreement provides a road map for getting out of this crisis,” Benomar said. “If all parties, including Ansarullah, co-operate, implementation of the agreement will enable the state to regain its authority.” However, “if there are disagreements... or violations of this agreement, the situation will be more complicated and more dangerous. I hope we will not reach this stage.” Ansarullah easily overran Sanaa before moving on to Hudeida as well as Shia-populated Dhamar and neighbouring Ibb, where clashes between Sunni tribesmen and Shia rebels killed dozens last month. The rebel moves have increased the threat of open confrontation with Al Qaeda. Benomar also warned of “Al Qaeda becoming more bold and active with a potential to grow more”. Yemen is also facing a southern separatist movement emboldened by the expansion of Shia rebel control further north. On October 14, activists began a campaign of protests, including an indefinite sit-in demonstration in Aden, the capital of the former South Yemen. Benomar spoke of a “big challenge in the south” which “is becoming a flashpoint and with a new, much stronger, separatist trend”.