Yemeni Jews face growing sectarian troubles

The Houthis are rumored to dispute the legitimacy of the Yemeni republic, which replaced the northern Imamate after the 1962 revolution. They allegedly regard Mr. Saleh, who hails from a Zaydi background, but is not a sayyid, as an illegitimate head of state.

But the family says they are simply fighting for religious tolerance and freedom of speech.

Connections to Iran?

Yemen's Zaydis take their name from their fifth Imam, Zayd ibn Ali. They are doctrinally distinct from the Twelvers, the dominant branch of Shiite Islam in Iran and Lebanon. Twelver Shiites believe that the 12th Imam, Muhammad al-Mahdi, has been hidden by Allah and will reappear on earth as the savior of mankind.

But Yemen's Shiite-dominated government has been quick to frame the conflict in the regional context of growing Iranian influence. Yemeni Foreign Minister Abu Bakr al-Qirbi has spoken of "external support for the rebellion, which aims at pushing Yemen toward sectarian conflict."

Some charge that Hussein al-Houthi developed ties to Iran before he was killed and that the rebellion may be receiving funds from the Islamic republic. But Abdul-Malik has denied the links, and Western diplomats are skeptical of direct support by the Iranian state.

"This is an expedient move by the Yemeni government designed to defame and discredit the Houthi family and their followers," says Bernard Haykel, professor of Middle Eastern Studies at New York University.

Sunni-Shiite tensions

Yemen's Sunni majority enjoys predominantly stable relations with the Shiite minority. But in Saada, the Houthi family is also pursuing grievances against the Salafis, a hard-line sect within Sunni Islam. The Salafis have connections with Saudi Wahhabism, and they run a network of madrassas in this border zone. The Houthis say that Saleh's administration is privately backing the Salafis and complain of a government campaign to replace Zaydi Shiite preachers with Salafi imams.

Dammaj is the biggest Salafi religious institution in Saada, housing several thousand students. This defensive pocket of Sunni believers – within a Shiite enclave – relies on a private militia to patrol its borders. It attracts dozens of Western-born Muslims and converts from Europe and the US.

On March 26, a French student was killed during fighting between Houthi supporters and Salafis at Dammaj, suggesting that local tensions are increasing further as the insurgency extends into its third month.

The Yemeni military is up against well-armed, guerilla-style fighters who know the mountain terrain intimately. "Tactics this time around appear to be more sophisticated than in the previous two conflicts," says one Western diplomatic source. "It's not clear if a military solution exists."

Saleh has stated there will be no negotiations with the rebels, but he may be forced to reconsider if he wants the matter settled ahead of a crucial Persian Gulf investors' conference scheduled for the end of April.

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