Yemen’s Nobel Peace Prize Laureate Tawakkol Karman is urging citizens of Yemen to rise against the Houthi coup and continue to participate in a peaceful revolution. On January 22 the Houthi Rebels in Yemen seized President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s office and attacked his residence in an attempt to overthrow the government. Thirty-five people were killed and dozens more wounded in the clashes that followed between Houthi militants and security forces in Yemen’s capital, Sanna.
The Houthis seized control of Sanna last September after a decade-long rebellion leading former president Hadi and his government to resign. On February 6 the Houthi militants threatened to impose a new presidential council in Yemen. The declaration was initially rejected by other factions in the country.
Thousands of Yemen’s citizens took to the streets to protest the proposed plan by Houthi rebels to dissolve the country’s parliament and install their own government. Many youth-led movements, including one led by Tawakkol, stand in solidarity with Yemini protestors.
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Protests Erupt Across Yemen After Houthi Rebels Announce Plan to Dissolve Parliament, Vice News, 7 February, 2015.
Two parties quit resumed Yemen crisis talks citing Houthi threats, Trust, 9 February, 2015.
VIDEO: Learn what inspired Tawakkol to become an activist.