Yemen rebel leader calls for dialogue to end clashes with former ally

Yemen's rebel leader Abdel-Malek al-Houthi on Saturday called for dialogue to end street clashes between his loyalists and one-time allies aligned with former president Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Both sides have been fighting in the rebel-held capital Sana'a over the past three days, wrecking their alliance against a Saudi-led military coalition.

In a televised address, al-Houthi called on Saleh to "be more mature" than his forces.

"Let the General people's Congress [Saleh's party] seek with us judgment of the sane and elders in this country. The wrongdoer then should be held responsible," al-Houthi said.

Both sides have traded blame over the clashes, which started on Wednesday reportedly when Houthi insurgents stormed a key Sana'a mosque controlled by pro-Saleh forces.

Saudi-owned television Al Arabiya reported that at least 80 people have since been killed in the clashes.

In recent months, tensions have grown between Saleh and the Houthi rebels. Saleh's supporters have accused the Houthis of trying to monopolize power.

Yemen, one of the Arab world's poorest countries, has since late 2014 been embroiled in a devastating conflict between the Saudi-backed government and Iran-allied rebels.

The conflict has intensified since March 2015, when the Houthis first advanced on the government's temporary capital of Aden, prompting Saudi Arabia and Sunni allies to start an air campaign against the Shiite group.

Saudi Arabia fears that the rebels will give its regional rival, Shiite Iran, a strategic foothold on the Arabian Peninsula.