6 Al Houthi field leaders killed and 10 surrendered

By Nasser Arrabyee/05/12/2009

A total of 10 Al Houthi rebels including two leaders surrendered themselves to the Yemeni army and showed readiness to fight against the rebels, military and tribal sources said Saturday.

The surrender took place on Friday in Harf Sufyan, the most important frontline in the south of Sa'ada province.

The sources identified the 10 rebels who surrendered through the local tribal sheikh Hamed Mused Kazma, as Fares Nasser Al Shahwani, Jamil Ali Al Shahwani, Saleh Nasser Al Shahwani, Radman Othman, Ahmed Hadi Al Shahwani, Bakil Yahya Al Shahwani, Mujahed Nasser, Muhsen Abdullah, Ahmed Naji Al Shahwani, and Ali Muhsen Al Shahwani.

Farres Nasser Al Al Shahwani, and Jamil Ali Al Shahwani were field leaders in Harf Sufyan frontline, the sources said.

The tribal sources said those who surrendered themselves expressed their repentance and refusal of the rebellion, and also expressed their readiness to fight against the rebels.

Earlier, the army and the local authority in Sa'ada called upon the misled fighters of Al Houthi to surrender and return to their houses and families and that the government will protect them from any danger.

Meanwhile, military sources said that 6 field leaders of Al Houthi rebels were also killed over the last two days in fierce battles in Harf Sufyan where the army is betting that the war will be over when Harf Sufyan is under its control.

The dead field leaders were identified as Musfer Al Namer (specialized in communication), Zakaria Hassan Al Houthi, Yahya Mohammed (Abu Salem), Ali Dhaif Allah Al Khawlani,Abdullah Khater, and Yahya Hussein Al Houthi.

The sources also said that three field leaders of the rebels were referred Saturday to the prosecution for charges of participating in the armed rebellion.

On their part, Al Houthi rebels, said in a statement sent through emails, that Saudi air strikes and artillery bombardment continued Friday and Saturday on the areas of Al Husama, Jabal Al Dukhan, and Jabal Al Dood. They also said that Saudi forces are preparing for a ground attack on Al Malahaid from the direction of Al Rumaih mountain. The rebels said they destroyed three Saudi tanks on Friday.