Yemen begins trial of Shiite rebel leader's fugitive brother

Oct 26, 2009, 11:20 GMT

Sana'a, Yemen - A Yemeni state security court began on Monday the trial in absentia of an MP charged with playing a leading role in the Shiite rebellion led by his brother in the north-western part of the Arab country.

Yahya al-Houthi, the elder brother of the insurgents' commander Abdul-Malik al-Houthi, was charged with 'forming a terrorist armed group.'

Thousands of Shiite insurgents are fighting against the national army in rugged areas in the north-western provinces of Saada and Amran.

Parliament lifted Yahy's parliamentary immunity on October 10 to pave the way for his trial.

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

Presiding judge Muhssein Alwan adjourned the trial until November 2, saying the court would appoint lawyers to defend Yahya.

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

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.

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