Yemen Car Dealers Embrace Post-Saleh Security as Challenges Loom
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Auto-sellers in Yemen’s capital, Sana’a, are putting their shiny new cars back on display after months of hiding them from burglars and stray artillery shells.
Wael Issa, manager of a Sana’a dealership, says most sales last year were pickup trucks -- favoured by tribal opponents of former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, as they could be mounted with machine-guns and used to carry fighters. Issa says his customer profile will be a test of the accord, aimed at ending a yearlong uprising, that saw Saleh replaced by Abdurabu Mansur Hadi this week. “Once we start selling small sedans that Yemenis with office jobs use, you can say things are better.”