Home of Yemen's president shelled by rebels

Shiite Houthi rebels have shelled the residence of the country’s president and also swept into the presidential palace in the capital, according to the country’s information minister.

The minister, Nadia al-Sakkaf, posted on her Twitter account that President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi home in downtown Sanaa has come under “heavy shelling since 3:00 PM by armed forces positioned over rooftops facing his house”.

Mr Hadi is believed to be inside the house.

The shelling is a dramatic escalation in the violence that has gripped Sanaa since yesterday and which has been described as a coup.

Ms Al-Sakkaf’s posting came as a Yemeni army commander said the rebels have also raided the presidential palace, where Mr Hadi’s office is, and are looting its weapons depot.

Meanwhile, the UN Security Council held an emergency meeting on the chaotic situation in Yemen.

Britain’s UN Ambassador Mark Lyall Grant said he called the closed-door meeting to hear a briefing on the situation from the UN envoy for Yemen, Jamal Benomar, who is in Qatar and heading to Sanaa later today.

“Clearly the situation has deteriorated very significantly over the last 48 hours and that’s why the Security Council needs to meet and decide its response,” Mr Lyall Grant said.

He expressed hope that the council will issue a statement expressing “deep concern about the deteriorating security situation”.