It looks as if the on-off Houthi war in northern Yemen may be on again following two days of clashes that have left at least 22 people dead and more than 50 injured.

The German news agency, citing tribal sources, reports that seven pro-government tribesmen and five Houthi rebels died in battles on Monday and Tueday in the Harf Sufyan and Amashiya districts of Amran province.

More fighting in Amran province on Tuesday resulted in the deaths of six tribesmen and four rebels.

The conflict has been running sporadically since 2004. Saudi forces were involved, as well as Yemeni forces and tribal militias, in the most recent round of all-out fighting, which was halted by a ceasefire in February.

The government has accused the rebels of 635 ceasefire violations since then, but little effort has been made to tackle the underlying causes of the conflict. 

Posted by Brian Whitaker, 21 July 2010.