Yemen officials, rebels start peace talks in Qatar

Tue Aug 24, 2010 5:58pm EDT

* Government, rebels start peace talks in Qatar

* Violence continues in north, south Yemen

(Updates with start of talks)

By Mohamed Sudam

SANAA, Aug 24 (Reuters) - Talks to cement a truce in north Yemen began in Qatar on Tuesday between government officials and Shi'ite rebels, representatives on both sides said, despite clashes which killed seven people.

Facing a growing separatist revolt in the south and an upsurge in al Qaeda attacks, Yemen is keen to put an end to the conflict with Shi'ite rebels that has plagued the northern region since 2004 and at times dragged in Saudi Arabia.

Yemeni delegations, made up of military representatives, are in Doha trying to turn a fragile ceasefire into a formal peace agreement with the help of Qatari mediators who helped seal a short-lived 2008 peace deal.

"The talks started on schedule, but I have no further details," a government official told Reuters.

"The talks between the two sides began under Qatari sponsorship," rebel spokesman Mohammed Abdel-Salam said by telephone. Yahya al-Houthi, a brother of the rebels' leader, is to take part in the talks, another rebel spokesman said.

The talks came despite fighting between the rebels and pro-government tribesmen which killed at least four tribal fighters and three rebels in the northern town of Huth, about 100 km (60 miles) north of Sanaa late on Monday, a tribal official told Reuters.

Yemen reached a new truce with rebels in February to halt fighting that has displaced 350,000 people since 2004.



TALKS A SIDESHOW

Some Yemen analysts see the Doha talks as a sideshow to growing violence in the country's south, but others feel they could form a solid foundation for a long term peace, as the government seeks to turn its focus to fighting al Qaeda militants who pose a bigger strategic threat.

"I am very optimistic," said Abdul Ghani al Iryani, a Yemeni analyst based in Sanaa. "I think both sides, the government and the Houthis, are sincere in trying to negotiate a permanent ceasefire."

Yemen has come under increasing pressure to resolve domestic conflicts and focus on quashing a regional al Qaeda wing that regrouped in the Arabian Peninsula state last year and has launched attacks on Western, Saudi and Yemeni targets.

On the northern front, Iryani said he felt the peace talks may stumble if the government did not release imprisoned Houthis, the Shi'ite rebels who are identified by the clan name of their leader Abdul Malek al-Houthi.

The main demands from the rebel side have been the government release of prisoners, while Houthis were expected to relinquish their arms as well as control of the region to the state.

Both sides have accused the other of bringing the region to the brink of war by not living up to their obligations.

"So far the government has been resistant and has not released the Houthi prisoners. That's a sticking point that might destroy the chances of this effort," he said. (Additional reporting by Mohammed Ghobari in Sanaa and Regan E. Doherty in Doha; Writing by Erika Solomon and Firouz Sedarat; Editing by Jon Hemming)



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