SANAA
Yemen's Shiite Houthi group on Saturday declared a state of general mobilization, attributing the move to what it described as "deteriorating security conditions in the country."
Yemen's official news agency, which is controlled by the Houthis, quoted the Houthi Supreme Revolutionary Committee – the main decision-making body in the group – as declaring general mobilization.
The committee said the move was taken due to what it called the "war imposed on the Yemeni people on all fronts."
It called on Yemenis to stand together and collaborate with the army and security forces to fight "terrorist forces" nationwide.
The Houthi move came only minutes after Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi delivered a televised address in which he called on the Houthis to withdraw from capital Sanaa which they occupied in September of 2014.
Yemen's Houthis emerged as a formidable political and military force last September when they assumed control of capital Sanaa before establishing control over other parts of the country as well.
Last month, the Houthis issued what they described as a constitutional declaration dissolving parliament and establishing a 551-member transitional council.
The declaration was, however, rejected by most of Yemen's political forces – along with some neighboring Gulf countries – which described it as a "coup against constitutional legitimacy."
Fractious Yemen has remained in a state of turmoil since pro-democracy protests forced autocratic president Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down in 2012 after 33 years in power.
www.aa.com.tr/en
