Yemen’s fragile ceasefire breaks as protesters mourn their dead

Doctors bemoan lack of medicine for peace camp protesters as explosions herald return to violence Outside the gates of one of the main hospitals in Yemen’s capital, tens of thousands of men, women and children stood in silence. The crowd had gathered to mourn the deaths of 83 protesters, shot dead by Yemeni security services over the past three days. It was the worst bout of violence in the eight-month uprising. One by one, the bodies emerged from the morgue, wrapped in yellow blankets and carried out on the shoulders of grieving relatives and friends. A group of veiled women wailed in grief as placards showing the pale, bloody face of a baby boy shot in the head on Tuesday bobbed above the crowd. As the mourners bowed down to pray, the loud thud of explosions suddenly began echoing off the surrounding mountains. A shaky ceasefire, negotiated on Tuesday by the vice-president and acting head of state, Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi, had been broken. The Republican Guard, who are loyal to President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s son, and a division of renegade soldiers were once again battling for Sana’a. The crowd looked on as white smoke rose from the city. “Allahu akbar,” they roared as sorrow quickly turned to anger. By the time the crowd had reached Change Square, the three-mile stretch of road in the heart of Sana’a where protesters have been camped since February, doctors were saying a further five protesters had been killed. Dr Tariq Noman, a surgeon who has been working in the field hospital in Change Square since March, had seen four of the dead: “One killed by a falling shell, two by stray bullets and one by sniper fire.” It was the second day in a row that missiles were fired into the protest camp. “We heard two heavy explosions, after that the missiles fell on us like rain,” said a man pointing to blood on the floor of his tent. “My brother was hit in the leg, another man was hit in the head, he died instantly.” Protesters claim the Republican Guard are firing anti-aircraft missiles into the camp. As the afternoon wore on, violence spread to other parts of the capital. A missile thudded into the 11th floor of a building hosting the al-Jazeera bureau. The military have already ordered people in some parts of the city to evacuate. Other residents have fled for the safety of surrounding mountain villages. Hospitals are struggling to make space, let alone provide care, for the hundreds suffering from bullet wounds and gas inhalation. One doctor working in a field hospital told al-Jazeera that people were dying through a shortage of medical supplies and a “lack of response from international organisations”. The headquarters of the renegade 1st Armoured Division – one of Yemen’s most experienced military outfits which defected in March to join the opposition – also came under heavy shelling. Both the division and the guards claim about 25,000 fighters, although the latter are better armed. Opinion is divided among protesters as to whether or not the renegade troops are aiding their cause. A spokesman for Ali Mohsin, the division’s leader, said on Wednesday the troops were “acting in self-defence and would respect any proposed ceasefire”. However, others believe their presence justifies a stronger crackdown. Abdullatif bin Rashid Al-Zayani, general secretary of the Gulf Co-operation Council, abruptly left Yemen on Wednesday after meeting the Yemeni vice-president. The rapid departure of the Kuwaiti amir ends hopes of a peaceful end to the violence. For months Zayani and other Gulf monarchies have tried in vain to get Saleh to sign a transitional deal would allow him to resign in exchange for immunity from prosecution. Saleh has committed to signing several times, only to pull back at the last minute. Saleh remains in Saudi Arabia, where he went for treatment after suffering severe chest wounds in a booby-trap bombing of his compound in early June. Last week, Saleh granted his vice-president the authority to negotiate and sign the GCC plan. But the opposition has rejected the move as a stalling tactic. Yemen Arab and Middle East unrest Middle East Protest Tom Finn guardian.co.uk

Posted by on September 21, 2011. Filed under News, Politics, World News. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0. You can skip to the end and leave a response. Pinging is currently not allowed.