Shiite militia break up demo as Yemen stuck in power vacuum

(MENAFN- Arab News) Sanaa: Shiite militia fired warning shots Sunday to disperse a protest against their takeover of Sanaa as parliament failed to convene to discuss the president's resignation prolonging a dangerous power vacuum in Yemen.President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi a key US ally in the fight against Al-Qaeda's Yemen-based deadly franchise tendered his resignation along with Prime Minister Khalid Bahah on Thursday saying he could no longer stay in office as Yemen was in 'total deadlock.'The Shiite Houthi militia who have controlled most of the capital since September overran the presidential palace last week prompting Hadi to tender his resignation shortly after Bahah quit.As demonstrators began to gather near Sanaa University early on Sunday to protest against the increasing Houthi control the Shiite militiamen fired warning shots to disperse them and made several arrests.The militiamen also attacked journalists and smashed their cameras deploying in force around the university to prevent any renewed protest.On Saturday thousands of Yemenis took to the streets of Sanaa in the biggest demonstration to date against the Houthis.The crisis in the Arabian Peninsula country escalated on January 17 when the Houthis seized Hadi's chief of staff Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak in an apparent bid to extract changes to a draft constitution they oppose.The Houthis still hold Mubarak and maintain a tight grip on the capital despite a deal struck late on Wednesday to end what authorities called a coup attempt.The fall of Hadi's Western-backed government would raise fears of complete chaos engulfing Yemen strategically located next to oil-rich Saudi Arabia and on the key shipping route from the Suez Canal to the Gulf.