SANAA
Shiite Houthi militants deployed on the main streets of Yemeni capital Sanaa on Monday in the total absence of police and army troops.
The Shiite militants set up new checkpoints at intersections across the sprawling city and searched passersby and vehicles, eyewitnesses said.
The fresh deployments came only a few hours after the Shiite movement signed a deal with President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi late on Sunday aimed at ending weeks of tension in Sanaa.
The Houthis have been taking to the streets since mid-August to demand the resignation of the government and the reversal of an earlier government decision to raise fuel prices.
On Monday, Houthi militants stormed two southern Sanaa residences owned by Presidential Adviser for Defense Affairs Gen. Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar, according to eyewitnesses.
Ali al-Emad, a Houthi leader, confirmed on Facebook that the two residences had been seized by "vigilantes."
Yemen has been rocked by political instability since the 2012 ouster of longtime ruler Ali Abdullah Saleh.
Sunday's deal between the president and the Houthis calls for, among other things, the formation of a government within three days; the appointment of a nonpartisan prime minister; and the appointment of a Houthi advisor to the president.
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