Houthis rebels capture oil-rich city

Sana'a, April 9, (dpa/GNA) - Yemen's Shiite Houthis captured on Thursday the oil-rich city of Ataq, consolidating the rebel movement's foothold in the southern part of the country despite airstrikes by a Saudi-led alliance.

The Houthis overran Ataq, the capital city of the Shabwa province, hours after a bombardment by coalition warplanes in the area, local sources said.

The fall of Ataq to the Houthis came without resistance from security forces who are believed to be loyal to former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, an ally of the rebels, the sources added.

"The Houthi forces had set up checkpoints at the entrance of Ataq and in its centre before overrunning government institutions in the city," a local official told dpa on condition of anonymity for fear of reprisal.

The Houthis, who hail from the north, already control other parts of Shabwa province.

The rebels are seeking to consolidate their presence in southern Yemen as they push to seize the southern port city of Aden, the stronghold of internationally recognized President Abd Rabu Mansour Hadi.

Saudi Arabia and fellow Sunni Arab countries launched in late March an air campaign targeting the Houthis, who forced Hadi to flee the country.

The Saudi-led intervention is threatening a wider conflict with Shiite Iran, widely understood to be backing the Houthis.

Iran has sent two warships to the Gulf of Aden, saying they are only intended to protect Iranian commercial shipping from pirates.

Saudi Arabia views Iran as a regional rival, which has proxies in Syria, Lebanon and Iraq.

GNA