The U.S. to 'Close' Its Embassy in Yemen's Capital on Wednesday

With the intensification of the crisis in Yemen and the deterioration of the security situation since the Houthi takeover, reports indicate that the U.S. embassy in Sanaa will close on Wednesday, February 11. The Associated Press reported, citing two U.S. officials, that diplomats at the U.S. embassy in Sanaa were evacuated on Tuesday. Reuters also reported, based on embassy staff in Sanaa and U.S. officials in Washington, that embassy personnel have been gathering or destroying documents and weapons in recent days, and several diplomats have left the embassy prior to its closure on Wednesday. According to embassy staff, the U.S. ambassador in Yemen told them that they might request Turkey or Algeria to take over the protection of U.S. interests in Yemen. Jen Psaki, the U.S. State Department spokesperson, refrained from commenting on these reports on Tuesday. The U.S. embassy in Sanaa had announced on its website on Sunday that it had suspended consular services until further notice. The Associated Press, citing U.S. officials, stated that the Marine guards protecting the embassy in Sanaa would also be evacuated, but U.S. strike forces conducting counter-terrorism missions in parts of Yemen would remain in the country. The U.S. has repeatedly targeted Al-Qaeda members in Yemen using drones. The U.S. embassy had begun reducing its staff in Yemen since the Houthis occupied sensitive government areas and buildings in Sanaa, a move that intensified after the occupation of the presidential palace and the house arrest of President Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi. The Yemeni president and Prime Minister Khaled Bahah, who had come to power after UN-mediated negotiations, resigned following the Houthi actions. The Houthis then announced that to fill the 'power vacuum', they would dissolve the parliament and form a presidential council. However, the Gulf Cooperation Council labeled the Houthi actions as a 'coup', and Ban Ki-moon, the UN Secretary-General, stated after meeting with King Salman of Saudi Arabia in Riyadh on February 8 that 'the Houthi takeover has worsened the situation in Yemen and Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi, the legitimate president, must return to power.' On the same day, the UN special envoy for Yemen announced that all parties, including the Houthis, agreed to resume talks starting Monday of this week. The U.S. embassy in Sanaa is the third U.S. embassy to close since 2010, following the onset of protests and violence in Damascus and Tripoli, Libya. According to Reuters, the embassies of Britain, France, and Germany have also reduced their services and granted their local staff two months of paid leave, but have not yet announced the closure of their embassies. Meanwhile, according to the Associated Press, citing Yemeni army commanders, the Shia Houthi rebels known as 'Ansar Allah' took full control of the Al-Bayda province in central Yemen on Tuesday with the help of forces loyal to Ali Abdullah Saleh, the ousted president. The IRNA news agency, citing the 'Al-Mayadeen' network, reported the Houthi advance in Al-Bayda as 'the destruction of Al-Qaeda terrorists by Ansar Allah with the help of the Yemeni army.' Al-Bayda province is the gateway to the oil-rich Marib province in eastern Yemen, which is still not under Houthi control. Southern Yemen has also repeatedly witnessed demonstrations by supporters of independence from the north.