DRUGS FUNDING REBELS,SAYS AL-ALIMI

There may be a relationship between the rebel movement in Sa'ada and
drug traffickers, said Deputy Prime Minister and Interior Minister,
Rashad al-Alimi on Thursday. Therefore, a part of the proceeds
produced by the drug trade in Yemen, which has been active in the
past few years, may be going to finance the terrorist operations of
the rebels in Sa'ada, he said.It is pretty much impossible to get
response from any of the rebels about these claims, as a total media
blackout around the area has prevented the press from going to Sa'ada
or doing any reporting there.

Armed followers of Abdul-Malik al-Houthi have been battling with
government forces in the north since January, and hundreds of people
have been killed in the fighting. "The security agencies have
definite information that has confirmed that the rebels in Sa'ada
take quantities of drugs during fighting with the governmental
forces," said al-Alimi at a press conference held in Thursday, May
24. The Minister said that the reason for the increasing drug trade
in Yemen and the smuggling of such things to the neighboring
countries in the last few months is that the rebels control some
border areas with Saudi Arabia. Therefore, they do not find
difficulties in smuggling and trafficking these drugs to the
neighboring countries.

Al-Alimi claimed that the security situation in Sa'ada was completely
under the governmental forces' control, except in three districts:
Ghamer, Qataber and Razeh. However, the army could break into these
districts and dominate them, except for one fortress, where some
rebels are. Those rebels have taken hundreds of unarmed citizens and
deployed them as human shields around the fortress. He also said that
the rebels include no more than 1,600 people, including 880 people
who were recently released according to orders by President Ali
Abdullah Saleh as part of the general amnesty for those involved in
the first war with these rebels. The minister said that military
operations in Sa'ada were suspended to celebrate the Day of Yemeni
Unification and to give religious scholars the chance to discuss this
issue with the rebels.

The government awaits the rebels' reaction.In related news, al-Alimi
said that the security forces defused five bombs planted by some the
elements of the rebels in Sana'a on May 21 after the explosion of one
bomb in the sailah in Old Sana'a. These explosives were found in
cardboard boxes in places frequented by children, women and the
public, he said.As for the rumored external interference in these
events, al-Alimi said that one of the most important pieces of
evidence of Iranian involvement in support of the rebel movement in
the Sa'ada is that one rebel possessed a document from the Iranian
embassy regarding the establishment of an Islamic state in Yemen on
the Iranian model.

The rebel, Mohammad al-Dailami, was carrying the document when he was
arrested in Sana'a and subsequently sentenced to death. This document
shows al-Dailami's agreement with the Charge D'affaires of the
Iranian ambassador in Sana'a.The agreement also says that the
cooperation will begin by establishing private associations that will
receive the Iranian support. Al-Alimi said that a group of Iranians
has been arrested for their alleged involvement in the drug trade,
and that it is likely that they have links to the leadership of the
rebellion.He said that Yemen told Iran that their official media,
such as al-Alam Channel and Tehran Radio, have been supporting the
al-Houthi rebels. Also, some of the leaders of the rebels are guests
of religious groups in Iran.

He accused the Iranian intelligence services of arranging
demonstrations against Yemen in front of the Yemeni embassy in
Tehran, while the Yemeni government refused to allow civic
organizations to do demonstrations against the Iranian interference
in Yemen for the sake of the relations with Iran as an Islamic state.
Al-Alimi asked Iran to clarify its position publicly and explicitly
toward the rebels of Sa'ada as Libya has done. Libya has sent an
envoy with a message condemning the rebel movement. Al-Alimi said
that large numbers of Yemenis went to Libya and received monetary
sums under various names, and Yahya al-Houthi received financial
support from Libya, which was used to support the insurgency in
Sa'ada. He called upon Libya to harness these moneys in the service
of development in Yemen.

Al-Alimi said that the Yemeni government appreciates Libya's stance
of refusing to interfere in the internal affairs of Yemen and has
demanded that practical steps necessary to prove this commitment be
taken. He denied the existence of any Arab mediation in the conflict
in Sa'ada, and also he denied the involvement of any other Yemeni
elements in this conflict. But he added that he had information about
the presence of non-Yemeni doctors and nurses working to treat rebels
in al-Naq'ah near the Yemeni-Saudi border.

Al-Alimi said that the government has closed the weapons markets
nationwide, and collected a large quantity of weapons. This project
costs tens of billions of rials, and has received the support of some
Gulf States.Field committees have been formed to collect weapons from
traders and sheiks, and local communities. He said that after six
months the government will have confiscated all weapons.

The government is inviting the members of the Shura Council and the
Parliament to cooperate to end this scourge on Yemeni society.
Al-Alimi said that next July the Interior Ministry would begin
implementation of the last stage of the security plan, which will
ensure security along the highways. In other news, he said that
750,000 refugees from Somalia, Ethiopia, Kenya, and Tanzania are
currently living in Yemen.