Yemen’s Shia rebels announced yesterday that they have taken over the country and dissolved parliament, finalising their months-long power grab.

This plunges the impoverished country deeper into turmoil and threatens to turn the crisis into a full-blown sectarian conflict, pitting the Iran-backed Houthi Shia against Sunni tribesmen and secessionists in the south.

It could also play into the hands of Yemen’s al-Qaida branch and jeopardise US counter-terrorism operations .

In a televised announcement from the Republican Palace in the capital, Sana’a, the Houthi rebels said they are forming a five-member presidential council that will replace President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi for an interim two-year period.

The Houthis also said a “revolutionary committee” would be in charge of forming a new parliament with 551 members. The announcement gave no indication of the fate of Hadi.

Sana’a remained calm after the Houthis announced the takeover on state TV and radio.

A group of men gathered for their weekly qat-chewing session at the top floor of one of the Old City’s characteristic brown buildings, turned off the radio after the announcement and all agreed that the Houthis forming a national council is the best possible scenario for Yemen’s future. “The governments of both Hadi and Saleh were weak, we need strong leaders to fight the terrorism of Al-Qaida,” said Mohammed Kadhi.

Shafiq al-Ghurbani, sitting next to him, refused to see Ansar Allah – as the Houthis and their supporters call themselves – as power hungry and greedy. “They will want to work together with many other parties and groups to create stability for Yemen,” he said.

One group it is unlikely the Houthis will want to work with is Islah, the Yemeni version of the Muslim Brotherhood that grew strong during the revolution. “They are as bad as Al-Qaida,” he said about the group, who are expected to organize against the Houthis in some way the coming days. Neither Islah nor ex-president Ali Abdullah Saleh’s General People’s Congress party (GPC) have made any official comments yet. The GPC said they will issue a statement on Saturday.

In the early evening, extensive celebratory gunfire and fireworks were heard throughout Sana’a, marking the political takeover. The city is divided but the Houthis has gained many new supporters in the capital in recent months.

Many say that one of the most severe problems of the city, the security situation, has become better since the Houthis formed their popular committees to guard the streets in September.

But Abdallah, working as a clerk in a hotel in the Old City, does not see the Houthis as heroes making the country safer. “They have their own agenda, they are not here to save us,” he said.

Former minister of information, Nadia Sakkaf, had anticipated the Houthi takeover. But she is scared that they will now have the power to target their opposition in new ways. “I worry that they might create special courts to try and convict any oppositional figures,” she said. She is especially worried for the safety of former president Hadi, who is now incarcerated in his home.