SANAA, Yemen, June 3 (UPI) -- Amid efforts to bring all factions and movement to the negotiating table in Yemen, the Houthi and Salafis clashed in the Saada province, officials said.
The Houthi Shiite rebel group want to restore the ancestral rule of the imams, while the Salafis, Sunni fundamentalists, want a stricter application of Islam in Yemen. Both religious groups have been fighting on and off for years in the northern provinces of Yemen for control.
The Yemen Post said Sunday several people were killed and others wounded in the northern province of Saada when Houthi militants and Salafis resumed their armed confrontation over territorial disputes.
Security Chief of Kitaf -- Saada province -- Faisal al-Tail told Mareb Press on Sunday that sectarian-related violence was on the rise in the province despite local authorities and sheiks' mediation efforts.
"Both groups are attributing the blame to the other, all mediation efforts and truce negotiations have failed so far," said Kitaf to al-Masadr online Sunday.
Ideologically at odds, the Houthi and Salafis have sworn to annihilate one another, each claiming Yemen's northern territories are rightfully theirs.
