Yemen's Houthis parade through Sanaa to drum up new recruits

Record ID: 903698

  • Title: Yemen's Houthis parade through Sanaa to drum up new recruits
  • Date: 20th July 2017
  • Summary: HOUTHI SOLDIERS DRESSED IN SAND-COLOURED CAMOUFLAGE MARCHING
  • Embargoed: 3rd August 2017 13:36
  • Keywords: civil war military parade conflict in Yemen Yemen's Houthis
  • Location: SANAA, YEMEN
  • City: SANAA, YEMEN
  • Country: Yemen
  • Topics: Conflicts/War/Peace,Military Conflicts
  • Reuters ID: LVA0036QIUYJ9
  • Aspect Ratio: 16:9
  • Story Text: Yemeni soldiers loyal to the Houthi movement paraded with their weapons in the heart of the capital Sanaa on Wednesday (July 19), in a rare public display of the group's resilience despite over two years of war.
    The rally aimed to showcase new recruits and encourage young men to take up arms to fight on battlefields across the country and on Yemen's border with Saudi Arabia.
    Yemen's civil war started in 2015, pitting the exiled government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, backed by the Saudi-led coalition, against the Iran-aligned Houthi group, which controls most of northern Yemen, including the capital, Sanaa.
    The United Nations has put the civilian death toll at about 10,000 killed and 40,000 wounded as result of actions by all sides and the conflict is blamed for widespread famine.
    "The youth military parade is to support the internal and external fronts, in the sea and on the ground," Houthi military commander Ali al-Washly said.
    After seizing Sanaa in late 2014 and advancing throughout the country, the Iran-aligned movement sparked a military intervention by Saudi Arabia and Arab allies opposed to Tehran.
    Despite thousands of air strikes and combat setbacks that have deprived it of most of Yemen's territory, the group still controls main population centres.
    Around 200 troops marched to martial hymns and chanted the Houthi credo, "God is Great! Death to America! Death to Israel" Victory to Islam!"
    "We came out to get rid of the enemies of God and against the aggression. God willing we will go the fronts and we will destroy them," said recruit Maged al-Serry.
    Yemen's army mostly sided with Houthi militiamen as the civil war erupted, but they scaled back traditional parades which used to include hundreds of troops and ballistic missiles after the coalition stepped up its air strikes.
    Wednesday's parade included weapons such as truck-mounted anti-aircraft and anti-tank missile launchers.
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