The move is seen as a sign of a deepening rift between the Houthis and Saleh loyalists.

:: News Agency sources in Sanaa said on Sunday that Saleh al-Sammad, the chief of the so-called Supreme Political Council, issued a decision to sack 29 officers who are loyalists to ousted Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh from their posts in the ministries of interior and defense and in Houthi-controlled governorates.

The 29 figures will be replaced by officers from among Houthi supporters and they were appointed as heads of departments in the ministries of defense and interior, security chiefs of provinces and chiefs of military and security commissions and institutions.

The move is seen as a sign of a deepening rift between the Houthis and Saleh loyalists.