Issue link: https://www.epageflip.net/i/450485
ByAhmedAl-Hajand Sarah El Deeb The Associated Press SANAA, YEMEN Shiitereb- els holding Yemen's pres- ident captive in his home reached a deal with the U.S.-backed leader Wednes- day to end a violent standoff in the capital, fueling fears that a key ally in the battle against al-Qaida has been sidelined. The late-night agree- ment, which promises the rebels greater say in run- ning the Arab world's poor- est nation in exchange for removing its fighters from President Abed Rabbo Man- sour Hadi's residence and key areas of the capital, left unclear who really controls the country. In the deal, carried on the official SABA news agency, the Houthi rebels also agreed to release a top aide to Hadi that they had kidnapped in recent days. The Houthis, who seized control of the capital and many state institutions in September, say they only want an equal share of power. Critics say they want to retain Hadi as president in name only, while keeping an iron grip on power. The power vacuum has raised fears Yemen's al-Qa- ida's branch, which claimed the recent attack on a French satirical weekly and is con- sidered by Washington to be the terror group's most dan- gerous affiliate, will only grow more powerful as Ye- men slides toward fragmen- tation and the conflict takes on an increasingly sectar- ian tone. The Shiite Houthis and Sunni terror group are sworn enemies After days of violent clashes and the seizure of the presidential palace, aides to Hadi said early Wednesday that he was "captive" in his home after Houthi rebels removed his guards and deployed their own fighters. Soon after the agreement Wednesday night, there was no visible change in Houthi deployment outside Hadi's house. While Wednesday's deal stopped short of asserting a Houthi takeover of govern- ment, analysts said the Shi- ite rebels had become Ye- men's de facto ruling power. "The Houthis are in ef- fective control," said Jamal Khashoggi, a Saudi colum- nist and observer of Ye- men's affairs. "Even if Hadi agrees to stay president, he no longer controls Yemen and can't give orders. ... The fear is the country will be dragged toward division and infighting." Speaking to reporters in Washington, State Depart- ment spokeswoman Jen Psaki said, "Clearly, we've seen a breakdown in the in- stitutions in Yemen." How- ever, she added, "the legiti- mate Yemeni government is led by President Hadi." "We remain in touch with him. He is in his home," she said, adding that Washing- ton's "ongoing counterter- rorism cooperation with Ye- men has continued" despite this week's standoff. In a speech late Tues- day, the Houthi's 33-year- old leader, Abdel-Malek al- Houthi, delivered a lengthy ultimatum, warning that "all options are open" if Houthi demands weren't met. Wednesday's deal bowed to a series of rebel demands, including amendment of a draft constitution and ex- panded Houthi represen- tation in parliament and in state institutions, SABA said. It also included better representation for Yemen's southerners. The agreement also calls on Hadi to revamp a com- mission tasked with writing the draft constitution to en- sure greater representation for the Houthis. The draft document had proposed a federation of six regions, something the Houthis re- ject. Wednesday's deal pro- vided for a federal state, but didn't mention the six-re- gion proposal. But the deal leaves con- tentious political issues un- resolved, opening the pos- sibility of a repeat of this week's violent standoff. The collapse of Hadi's powers is rooted in Yemen's fractured armed forces, torn between Hadi and his predecessor, deposed Pres- ident Abdullah Saleh. Saleh — toppled after more than three decades in power following a 2011 uprising — is accused by many of orchestrating the Houthis' seizure of Sanaa. Critics also say the Houthis have the backing of re- gional Shiite power Iran, a charge they deny. Capitalizing on the chaos, Saleh made a rare public statement Wednesday, call- ing on Hadi to call early presidential and parliamen- tary elections and urging the cancellation of U.N. Security Council sanctions imposed on him and two Houthi lead- ers last year after the Houthi seizure of power. KEY US ALLY Shiiterebels,Yemenpresident reach accord to end standoff HANIMOHAMMED—THEASSOCIATEDPRESS Houthi Shiite Yemeni raise their weapons during clashes near the presidential palace in Sanaa, Yemen on Monday. PHILIPPE WOJAZER — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS French Prime Minister Manuel Valls unveils new security measures at the Elysee Palace in Paris on Wednesday. By Lorne Cook and Sylvie Corbet The Associated Press PARIS Reeling from the Paris terror attacks, France announced broad new measures to fight homegrown terrorism like giving police better equip- ment and hiring more in- telligence agents, as Eu- ropean officials sought to strike the right balance between rushing through tough counterterrorism laws and protecting trea- sured democratic rights. Prime Minister Manuel Valls laid out the coun- terterrorism initiatives just as the Paris prosecu- tor announced prelimi- nary charges against four men for allegedly provid- ing logistical support to one of the attackers be- hind a three-day spree of violence this month that killed 17 people before the three gunmen were shot dead by police. France plans to spend 425 million euros ($490 million) over the next three years for the new measures. They include leaning on Internet com- panies and social media to help in the fight, cre- ating an improved data- base of suspected extrem- ists, and increasing intelli- gence-gathering on jihadis and other radicals — in part by making it easier to tap phones. About 2,600 counter-terrorism officers will be hired, 1,100 of them specifically for intelligence services. Meanwhile, at the Eu- ropean Union headquar- ters in Brussels, new ef- forts are being made to overcome privacy objec- tions and make the shar- ing of air passenger infor- mation easier. But conti- nental leaders warned also about going too far, at the risk of undermining in- dividual rights that are a cornerstone of the Euro- pean way of life. "The last thing" is for Europeans "to change the nature of our open soci- eties as a reaction to this threat. Because then, we would play into the hands of these terrorists," EU Vice President Frans Tim- mermans said. Some calls have emerged for a European equivalent of the U.S. Patriot Act, which was passed within weeks of the Sept. 11 at- tacks, to strengthen the hand of authorities to pre- vent terrorism. France announces anti-terror policies PARIS ATTACKS By Frank Jordans, Vladimir Isachenkov and Mstyslav Chernov The Associated Press BERLIN Diplomats from Russia and Ukraine agreed Wednesday on a divid- ing line from where both sides should pull back their heavy weapons, just hours after separatist forces de- ployed more arms and manpower to an emerg- ing flashpoint in eastern Ukraine. Germany's Foreign Min- ister, who hosted a meet- ing of his counterparts from Russia, Ukraine and France, said the four par- ties had agreed that the demarcation line defined in the Minsk agreement of last year should form the basis for the withdrawal. Under the plan, Ukraine and the pro-Russian sepa- ratists would pull back their heavy arms 15 kilometers (9 miles) on either side of the line, though there was no agreement on a withdrawal of all troops. "Today we have finally agreed that the demarca- tion line mentioned in the Minsk agreement is the line from where the withdrawal of heavy weapons needs to take place now," German Foreign Minister Frank- Walter Steinmeier told re- porters after the meeting in Berlin. Steinmeier said the agreement had been "dif- ficult work" and the talks, which follow a fruitless round of negotiations last week, were "testing the patience of all involved." The parties also agreed that the contact group of Ukraine, Russia, and the OSCE should meet as soon as possible with the aim of laying further groundwork for a high-level meeting in Kazakhstan's capital As- tana aimed at reaching a long-lasting settlement. Separately, Russian For- eign Minister Sergey Lav- rov said the "strong sup- port" for the pullback was the meeting's most impor- tant result. He said the for- eign ministers did not dis- cuss the sanctions that the West has imposed on Rus- sia over the Ukraine crisis, saying: "The sanctions are not our problem, it is the problem of those who in- troduced them and now do not know how to extricate themselves ..." Earlier Wednesday, Lav- rov had urged measures to contain the unfolding unrest, but said nothing about the rebels surrender- ing territory they acquired in violation of a peace deal concluded in September in Minsk, Belarus. WORSENING CRISIS Russia, Ukraine officials agree on pullback for heavy weapons MANU BRABO — THE ASSOCIATED PRESS Ukrainian women sit in a shelter during artillery fire between DNR forces and the Ukrainian Army in the Voroshilovsky area, center of Donetsk, Ukraine, on Sunday. By Tom Odula The Associated Press NAIROBI, KENYA Kenyan police Monday tear-gassed schoolchildren demonstrat- ing against the removal of their school's playground, which has been allegedly grabbed by a powerful pol- itician, said a Kenyan hu- man rights activist. The students from Lan- gata Road Primary School were in the front line of people pulling down a wall erected around the play- ground which has been ac- quired by a private developer said to be a powerful politi- cian, said Boniface Mwangi. Primary school children in Kenya are usually between 6 and 13 years of age. "The governor, the sena- tor and other government officials are all scared of the politician, they can- not do anything to stop the playground from the being taken," Mwangi said. Tele- vision footage showed chil- dren, some being carried away, writhing in pain, screaming and choking be- cause of the tear-gas. Police officers later brought dogs to the playground. Police spokesman Masoud Mwinyi was not available for comment. Eli- jah Mwangi, who was in charge of the police officers at the school, said he was following orders. Opposi- tion politician Eliud Owalo said last week that the play- ground had been grabbed to construct a parking lot for the politician's hotel ad- jacent to the school. PLAYGROUND PROTEST Kenyan police tear-gas school children Select"Subscribe"tabinlowerrightcorner Complete information for automatic weekly delivery to your email inbox That's it! This FREE service made possible by the advertisers in TV Select Magazine Kindly patronize and thank them. Click on their ads online to access their websites! FREE online subscription to TV Select Magazine Digital edition emailed to you, every Saturday! Just go online to www.ifoldsflip.com/t/5281 (You'll only need to go there one time) N EWS D AILY RED BLUFF TEHAMA COUNTY • Fully searchable online, zoom in, print out pages and more! • No newspaper online subscription or website access required. • Best of all ... it's ABSOLUTELY FREE! THURSDAY, JANUARY 22, 2015 REDBLUFFDAILYNEWS.COM | NEWS | 5 B