Yemen rebels reject newly named premier

11 Oct Japan News

Yemen's Shiite rebels rejected President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi's choice of a new prime minister, threatening to derail a U.N.-brokered peace deal with the armed group that has controlled the capital for weeks.Hadi named Ahmed Awad bin Mubarak after consultations with political parties, the official news agency Saba reported.Shortly after the announcement, the Houthi rebels said in a statement that the naming of bin Mubarak was not "consensual" and "makes a mockery of Yemen's independence and sovereignty as well as the will of the people."

The rebels' snub could signal a return to violence and could torpedo a Sept. 21 peace deal brokered by the United Nations, which ended fighting that claimed the lives of at least 140 people.

The Houthis took control of the capital on the same day that the agreement was reached, and after the military virtually collapsed following weeks of protests to demand a better share in power and a change in government.

The deal called for the appointment of a new head of government, and for the Houthis to pull out of the city.

Armed Houthis were still deployed in the capital late Tuesday, manning government offices and patrolling the streets.Senior Houthi rebels had previously told they objected to a choice of bin Mubarak because he was a close associate of the president and not seen as independent.