New Yemen government raises hopes of end to crisis

Formation of new cabinet, which includes Houthi loyalists and members of southern separatist movement, fulfils conditions for rebels to withdraw from capital.

A young supporter holds a portrait of Ali Abdullah Saleh under a giant national flag during a rally to protest against threatened UN sanctions against Yemen’s former president and rebel chiefs on NovShow more

SANAA // Yemen’s president on Friday announced a new cabinet including members of the Shiite Houthi group that captured the capital Sanaa in September, in a move that could help end a crippling standoff in the country.

Under a power-sharing agreement signed last month, the Houthis are meant to withdraw their forces from the city once a new administration is formed.

Tensions rose last week when they set an ultimatum for President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi to form a government within 10 days or face “other options”.

The new government will be headed by prime minister-designate Khaled Bahah, a former oil minister and ambassador to the United Nations. The 34 ministers named on state television and by news agency Saba include half a dozen Houthi loyalists, whose portfolios will include the civil service and social affairs.

Once a religious movement seeking greater autonomy in the north, the Houthis have in recent months become Yemen’s power-brokers and sent their militiamen into the west and centre of the country, far beyond their traditional redoubts.

They captured Sanaa on September 21, following weeks of anti-government unrest.

“The announcement of the government is a step that can help in easing the political crisis. I think President Hadi did not announce this government formation without consultations with the Houthis,” said Yemeni political analyst Ali Saif Hassan.

The cabinet also includes politicians from a wing of a southern separatist group, Al Hirak.

Abdullah Al Saydi, a former envoy to the United Nations was appointed foreign minister; Mahmoud Al Sobehy, a senior army commander in the southern city of Aden, became defence minister; Mohammed bin Nabhan, a member of Al Hirak, takes over the oil ministry; and Galal El Rouwaishan, former head of intelligence, is the new interior minister.

No changes were made to the finance ministry, which is headed by Mohammed Zemam.

Earlier on Friday, thousands Houthis and supporters of the Yemen’s former president Ali Abdullah Saleh protested on the streets of the capital over threatened UN sanctions against the ousted strongman and rebel chiefs.

Mr Saleh, who stepped down in early 2012 after a year of Arab Spring-inspired protests, is seen as the main backer of the Houthi rebel offensive.

Protesters, many brandishing machine guns, gathered in Tahrir Square in Sanaa, chanting slogans hailing Mr Saleh and condemning Washington for proposing the sanctions.

“The people want Ali Abdullah Saleh,” they chanted, warning the current president, Abdrabu Mansur Hadi: “We shall not listen to America!”

Mr Saleh’s General People’s Congress (GPC) party called the protests, warning that any sanctions would exacerbate the crisis in Yemen, which has been gripped by years of instability.

The UN Security Council was set to meet in New York later on Friday to vote on the US-drafted proposal to slap a travel ban and assets freeze on Mr Saleh and two of his alleged allies, the Houthi rebel commanders Abd Al Khaliq Al Houthi and Abdullah Yahya Al Hakim.

Mr Saleh served as Yemen’s first president after unification country’s north and south in 1990 but quit under a regional peace plan backed by the GCC and the United States.

The Houthi rebels fought Mr Saleh while he was in power but the former foes now appear to be allies.

Protesters carried portraits of Mr Saleh along with pictures of the rebel leader Abdulmalik Al Houthi.

Abd Al Houthi is the younger brother of the rebel chief and was among the commanders who oversaw the storming of Sanaa in September.

Abdullah Al Hakim is Abdulmalik Al Houthi’s military second-in-command.

* Reuters with additional reporting from Agence France-Presse