Sanaa (South24) 

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Over the past few days, the Iranian-backed Houthi militia arrested dozens in the city of Sanaa and Ibb in North Yemen, as part of a massive crackdown on celebrations of the 61st anniversary of the September 26 revolution.

According to activists and human rights sources, Houthi militants carried out arbitrary arrests in Sanaa and Ibb after protesters chanted anti-Houthi slogans. This was condemned by Amnesty International in its statement yesterday.

عاجل #عاجل
الخوثيين يطلقون حملة اعتقالات في إب و صنعاء لكل من شاركوا في إحتفالات #ثورة_26_سبتمبر_المجيدة pic.twitter.com/36dPWFGpsR

— راشد معروف (@RashidMaarouf) September 25, 2023

The organization said: “We call for the immediate and unconditional release all demonstrators held solely for peacefully exercising their right to freedom of assembly.”

Yemeni media quoted a Sanaa-based lawyer, who said he was following up on the cases of 20 people arrested following the peaceful demonstrations, that the police authorities in Sanaa informed him that there were hundreds of demonstrators currently detained.

These events coincided with escalating political tension between the Houthis and the General People's Congress (GPC) Party (Sanaa branch). On September 27, the Houthis overthrew the Sanaa government, also headed by Abdulaziz bin Habtoor [a senior official in the GPC].

Related: The Houthis declare the stage of «radical change» in North Yemen 

Meanwhile, yesterday, the United Nations Security Council condemned the killing of 3 Bahraini soldiers in a Houthi drone attack on Saudi Arabia’s southern border with Yemen, on September 25.

The Council said in a statement: “We strongly condemn the egregious and escalatory drone attack, attributed to the Houthis, on members of the armed forces of the Kingdom of Bahrain serving as part of the Arab Coalition to Support Legitimacy in Yemen.”

Related: Bahrain accuses the Houthis of targeting its forces in Saudi Arabia with drones, killing two

"The attack constitutes a serious threat to the peace process and regional stability. We call for an end to all terrorist attacks and reiterate our concern about the targeting of civilian infrastructure on the Saudi border," the statement added.