Yemeni parliament lifts immunity of rebel leader's brother (Roundup)

Oct 10, 2009, 15:48 GMT

Sana'a, Yemen - Yemen's Parliament on Saturday voted to lift the parliamentary immunity of MP Yahya al- Houthi, brother of a Shiite rebel leader whose followers are battling the national army in the country's north-west, parliamentary sources said.

It is the third time that the House of Deputies (parliament) has stripped al-Houthi of his immunity since 2006. A short-lived Qatari- sponsored peace agreement cancelled the previous two parliamentary moves.

Yahya, the elder brother of the current leader of the Houthis rebel group Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, now lives in Germany.

He is a member of the ruling General People's Congress party, led by President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Authorities accuse Yahya of stirring up sectarian strife and sedition through his media remarks supporting his brothers revolt.

The move is the first step in a legal process to allow prosecutors bring a lawsuit against him to the state security court.

Government troops have been battling thousands of armed rebels in rugged mountains overlooking the borders with Saudi Arabia since August 11, in the latest flare-up in the fighting that has raged on and off since mid-2004.

Houthis on Saturday called for a dialogue with the government based on an initiative drawn up by opposition parties in September.

'We have announced previously and reiterate today our readiness for dialogue and to deal positively with all the national initiatives,' the group said in an emailed statement.

'Dialogue is the only solution that would take Yemen to safety,' the statement said.

Authorities have recently rejected dialogue calls by the rebels, saying they have to comply with its terms for peace first.

Government officials have repeatedly insisted on the rebels' withdrawal from areas they control and their surrender to law and order as a precondition for any talks.

Two truces announced by the government since the military operation was launched in August collapsed a few hours after taking effect.

Meanwhile, around 100 rebels were killed and 280 others injured in clashes with government troops in Saada on Friday night, the Defence Ministry said in a statement.

The statement said the troops fought back after the rebels tried to storm military and police positions in different areas of the province.

Hundreds of insurgents, troops and civilians have been killed and around 150,000 people were forced to leave their villages during the past five weeks, according to UN estimates.

Authorities accuse the Shiite group of seeking to restore the rule of the Zaydi royal family, which was toppled by a republican revolution in 1962.

The Houthis say they are in revolt against government corruption and the Yemeni alliance with the United States.