SANAA, September 29 (RIA Novosti) – The Yemeni government has boosted military presence in the nation's capital Sanaa after Shiite Houthi rebels refused to leave the city and honor the deal reached with the country's president on Sunday, a local official told RIA Novosti.
The refusal sent tensions soaring in Sanaa, swelling by a hundred the ranks of al-Qaeda fighters and supporters of the conservative Islamic al-Islah Party in the Marib province east of Sanaa and in the central al-Bayda province.
The source told RIA Novosti the Yemeni government stepped up its military presence in Sanaa for fear of clashes.
A spokesperson with the Sanaa International Airport said in a comment to RIA Novosti that Arab air carriers had suspended all flights into the Yemeni capital over security concerns after Houthi rebels overrun the airport to inspect the planes.
According to the airport authority, Qatar-based airlines, as well as Alamartyh, Fly Dubai and Etihad Airways suspended flights to Sanaa on Monday due to the Houthi attack.
UN ambassador to Yemen, Jamal ben Omar, on Monday underscored the grave situation in Yemen, especially in Sanaa, following its seizure by Houthi rebel forces.
The envoy called on Yemen's political parties to cooperate on the implementation of the agreement signed with President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, despite the missed deadline to fill in the job of the country's prime minister.
Al-Qaeda's attacks on Houthi fighters have already killed over 20 rebels in the Marib province, days after a suicide bomber triggered a blast in al-Bayda, killing six Houthis.
