ADEN – At least 36 people have been killed and 185 wounded in two days ofheavy fighting between separatists and government troops in Yemen’s interimcapital of Aden, the Red Cross said.
Heavy fighting intensified at night after the two sides used tank andartillery on the second day of an attempted “coup” in the southern portcity, military sources said.
The Saudi-led military coalition which supports the government calledTuesday for an immediate ceasefire and an end to “all forms of armedconflict”, in a statement cited by Saudi state news agency SPA.
It said it would take “all necessary measures to restore security andstability” after earlier calls for restraint went unheeded.
The flare-up has added yet another dimension to one of the world’s mostcomplicated conflicts, a civil war that has left thousands dead andmillions on the brink of starvation.
The head of the International Committee for the Red Cross mission in Yemen,Carlos Batallas, said on Twitter on Monday that the clashes in Aden hadkilled 36 people and wounded 185.
The ICRC did not provide figures on civilian casualties.
Residents were hunkered down at home as five separatist fighters werekilled by snipers and four soldiers died in clashes, military sources said,with tanks and heavy artillery entering the fray.
The clashes came after separatist forces seized government buildings inwhat Yemen’s prime minister called an attempted coup.
At night, pro-separatist security forces advanced in some areas and werejust one kilometre (mile) away from the presidential palace in Aden,security and military sources told AFP.
They also seized two military camps near Aden international airport whichremained closed for the second day, the sources said.
Aden has served as the headquarters of Saudi-backed President AbedrabboMansour Hadi’s government since it was forced out of the capital Sanaa byHuthi rebels three years ago.
The separatists — who want the return of the independent South Yemen thatexisted before 1990 — supported Hadi’s forces against the Shiite rebels,but tensions between them have risen in recent months.——————————
‘Shooting’ all night——————————
Fighters from both sides have been deployed in most areas of Aden,paralysed for a second day after 15 people were killed and dozens woundedon Sunday.
Universities, schools and shops stayed closed, an AFP photographer said.
The hostilities erupted early Sunday when pro-government troops preventedsupporters of the separatist Southern Transitional Council from enteringAden for a rally.
Separatists have dispatched additional forces from the central province ofMarib and the southern province of Abyan, security sources said.
The forces from Abyan marched on Aden after clashes with loyalists on theway.
After the separatists seized the government headquarters on Sunday, PrimeMinister Ahmed bin Dagher denounced a “coup… in Aden against legitimacyand the country’s unity”.
He urged the Saudi-led coalition to intervene in its defence.
The coalition launched air strikes against the Iran-backed Huthi rebels inMarch 2015 and sent troops to support Hadi’s forces, fearing that Tehranwould gain a foothold in the country on Saudi Arabia’s southern border.
On Sunday, security sources said pro-separatist units trained and supportedby the UAE had taken over the government headquarters after clashes.
The International Committee of the Red Cross said fighting continuedovernight.
“All night shooting in Aden #Yemen, including heavy weapons,” AlexandreFaite, the head of the ICRC delegation in the country based in Sanaa, saidon Twitter.
“Those in southern part of city, including (ICRC staff) still unable to getout.”
UN envoy to Yemen Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed urged all parties to return to”calm and dialogue”.
The negotiator is to step down in April after three years overseeingUN-brokered negotiations between the government and rebels, none of whichhave stemmed the violence.
More than 9,200 people have been killed in Yemen since the Saudi-ledcoalition intervened.
The separatists joined forces with Hadi’s government to oust the rebelsfrom southern provinces in 2015, but tensions have soared since asecessionist governor’s sacking last year.——————————
‘Outlaws’——————————
Three civilians were among the 15 people killed on Sunday, hospital sourcessaid, after separatist protesters were prevented from entering Aden for ananti-government rally.
The separatists accused the premier of ordering his troops to open fire onthe protesters.
Sunday’s rally was called by the Southern Transitional Council, anautonomous body not recognised by the government and aimed at overseeingself-governance in southern provinces.
Former Aden governor Aidarous al-Zoubeidi formed the council in May lastyear after Hadi fired him.
The council had asked Hadi to make changes in the government, accusing itof corruption and mismanagement, and gave him a week to do so — a deadlinethat expired on Sunday.
It had warned that if Hadi did not accept the demand, its supporters wouldbegin a protest campaign to oust Dagher’s government.
South Yemen was independent — with former British colony Aden as itscapital — from its formation in 1967 until 1990, when it was unified withNorth Yemen. – AFP