SANA'A // Members of parliament criticised the government yesterday, holding it responsible for mishandling the war against al Houthi rebels in the north after seven weeks of a government offensive to crack the insurgency. "What we have heard today is something we have been listening to for five years," said Mohammed Abdellah al Kadi, a member of parliament from the ruling People's General Congress
"The main difference is that al Houthi presence was restricted in 2004 to a small part of a mountainous village. Now, the state is fighting in four provinces" and Sa'ada is under rebel control, he said. Mr al Kadi said that the government has failed in handling the situation in Sa'ada and the unrest in the south, and warned of the expansion of the tension to other provinces. "We need to know why al Houthi has become so powerful. The state has failed in dealing with the situation in Sa'ada and the southern provinces," he said.
"The minister of the interior said 50 people protested in the south, while the photos we got say there were thousands. The problem is that we do not acknowledge the crisis and once we acknowledge our crisis, we will be able to handle it," Mr al Kadi said. malqadhi@thenational.ae
