31 Dec 2024
Thursday 26 March 2015 - 16:14
Story Code : 156370

Fighting in Yemeni Aden airport kills 5 people

Fighting in Yemeni Aden airport kills 5 people
[caption id="attachment_156371" align="alignright" width="231"]A view of the Aden International Airport in Yemen (file photo) A view of the Aden International Airport in Yemen (file photo)[/caption]

At least five people have been killed during clashes between rival militant groups at the international airport in Yemens southern port city of Aden, security sources say.

The sources said on Thursday that 13 people have also been injured in the violence.

Flights to and from the airport had earlier been suspended amid the fighting and heavy exchanges of gunfire.

Air traffic at Aden airport was suspended and flights cancelled, an airport source, speaking on condition of anonymity, said.

Travelers arriving at the international airport, located approximately 420 kilometers (260 miles) south of the capital, Sanaa, earlier on Thursday were told to turn back because of the clashes, which erupted overnight.

One of the travelers said armed men had taken control of the access roads to the airport.

The development came after the commander of the special forces in Aden, Abdel Hafez al-Saqqaf, ordered units to be deployed on roads in the city, including near the airport.

The Popular Resistance Committees, loyal to fugitive former President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi, disputed the measures, and engaged in clashes in various parts of Aden.

Yemens fugitive former President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi 

Hadi, along with the cabinet members of Premier Khaled Bahah, stepped down in late January, but the Yemeni parliament did not approve the presidents resignation. He fled his home in Sanaa on February 21 after weeks under effective house arrest and went to Aden, Yemens second largest city, where he officially withdrew his resignation and highlighted his intention to resume duties.This came after the Houthi fighters took control of Sanaa last September, 2014.

Some Persian Gulf Arab states, including Saudi Arabia, have already relocated their embassies from Sanaa to Aden.

Hadi also called on the Ansarullah revolutionaries, who had taken control of Sanaa,to relinquish power and leave Sanaa. The Houthis, however, said Hadi had lost his legitimacy as head of state and was being sought as a fugitive from justice.

The Houthi movement played a key role in the 2011 popular uprising that forced dictator Ali Abdullah Saleh to quit after 33 years in power. The Ansarullah revolutionaries say the Yemeni government has been incapable of properly running the affairs of the country and providing security.

By Press TV
https://theiranproject.com/vdcbz0b8grhbsfp.4eur.html
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