IT WAS typical Aden. Bomb blasts, gunfire and fireworks lit up the night in a chaos of conflict and celebration. Southerners marched through Yemen’s second city proclaiming independence from northern taskmasters. Tanks punctured their cries with shells. Soldiers of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) joined in the mayhem, raining artillery fire on bases loyal to the vestiges of a central government that they had supposedly entered Yemen to protect.
The fighting that began on January 28th subsided after two days, leaving at least 36 dead. For the second time in three years officials loyal to the titular president, Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi, prepared to flee from their offices. As The Economist went to press Mr Hadi’s presidential guard held out on just one small hilltop. But his government’s bases, the lucrative container port and the refinery were all under control of the Security Belt, a southern rebel militia trained and armed by the UAE.
As a result, Yemen is left with three centres of power and Mr Hadi’s...Continue reading
Source: Middle East and Africa http://ift.tt/2EekpxH
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