SANAA 

Yemen's military police late on Sunday started assuming control of several government institutions taken over earlier in the day by Shiite Houthi militants, local media reported.

The handing over of the institutions took place upon request from Houthis with the aim of protecting the contents of these institutions, the official Yemeni news agency said.

It added that the handing over of the institutions took place between military policemen and Houthis under supervision from Yemen's Minister of Defense Gen. Mohamed Nasser Ahmed.

Earlier on Sunday, Houthi militants controlled the Defense Ministry and Central Bank headquarters in the Yemeni capital Sanaa.

Houthis signed a deal with Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi late on Sunday to bring to an end a political crisis that had taken Yemen by storm for more than three weeks.

Houthis have been taking to the streets in the capital for more than three weeks to demand the resignation of the government and the abolition of a previous government decision to raise fuel subsidies.

Sanaa streets calm hours after deal with Houthis

Cautious calm prevailed in Sanaa on Monday morning, only a few hours after Yemeni President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi signed a deal with the Shiite Houthi group aimed at ending weeks of tension in the capital.

Most neighborhoods of Sanaa were quiet in the morning, unlike previous days, when residents would frequently awake to the sound of explosions and violent confrontations between the Yemeni army and Houthi militants.

Nevertheless, Houthi checkpoints could still be seen in most northern Sanaa neighborhoods.

Traffic has returned to the streets, even those that had been the sites of recent clashes. Some businesses and institutions reopened their doors to patrons, after having been closed on Sunday in fear of violence.

Houthi protest tents, meanwhile, could still be seen on the streets of central Sanaa and at the capital's entrances.

The tents were erected in recent weeks as part of Houthi demonstrations against the government of outgoing prime minister Mohamed Basindawa.

Late Sunday, President Hadi signed a deal with the Houthi leadership ending weeks of tension.

Houthi protesters took to the streets more than three weeks ago to demand the resignation of the government and the reversal of a government decision to raise fuel prices.

www.aa.com.tr/en