Yemen's slain ex-President Saleh buried

Yemen's slain former President Ali Abdullah Saleh was buried on Saturday here, six days after Houthis killed him following deadly street clashes that erupted after he switched sides, a Houthi official said.

Saleh's body was first handed over to the Parliament Speaker Yahya al-Raiee amid limited attendance from his supporters and Parliament members, Xinhua news agency quoted the official as saying. He was buried later.

The official refused to reveal the location where the former leader was buried, but said "Saleh's tomb is in Sanaa".

Saleh, his relatives and his senior aides were killed on December 4 after three days of deadly street clashes between Houthi militias and the former President's armed loyalists in the capital.

Officials at Saudi-backed Saleh's party vowed to revenge their leader's death and to continue fighting against the Houthis.

The clashes first erupted last week after Saleh's loyalists prevented Houthis from entering a Saleh-run mosque to secure a nearby religious celebration organised by the group in Sabeen Square in central Sanaa.

The violence later intensified and turned into street fighting after Saleh announced disengagement of his alliance with the Houthis and declared war against them, citing allegedly "Houthi assaults on his family members".

Hours after Houthis announced the death of Saleh, their leader Abdul-Malik al-Houthi made a televised speech, saying his group had allegedly "foiled a plot by ex-President to involve all Yemeni people in armed chaos", accusing Saleh of betrayal.

Death toll from the week-long clashes in Sanaa increased to 234 people with 400 others wounded, the International Committee of the Red Cross for the Middle East had said earlier.