Yemeni Shiite rebels, making an aggressive bid for power in the impoverished Gulf state, arrested more than a hundred members from a rival Islamist Sunni political party, including two leaders, the party said in a statement Sunday.

The Islah party, the Muslim Brotherhood's branch in Yemen and a traditional power player in Yemen, had declared its support for the Saudi-led coalition bombing campaign against the rebels and their allies.

The Shiite rebels, known as Houthis, have been joined by security forces loyal to the ousted President Ali Abdullah Saleh '" whose loyalists control elite forces and large combat units in Yemen's military.