Security forces blanket Yemen capital

Hundreds of soldiers set up checkpoints in Sana’a as two prominent members of ruling party resign in protest Troops and security forces blanketed Yemen’s capital Sana’a on Saturday, enforcing a state of emergency imposed after rooftop snipers shot dead up to 42 anti-government protesters on Friday. Hundreds of soldiers moved into the streets to set up checkpoints and enforce a ban on carrying firearms in public, going so far as to check for hidden guns inside the ornamental scabbards of traditional Yemeni jambiya daggers. Tanks were deployed for the first time in weeks of civil disturbance in which more than 70 people have been killed. With mass protests convulsing the Arab world, Yemen became the second country in the region to announce emergency rule this week. Bahrain declared martial law on Tuesday. Defying the crackdown, the Yemeni opposition vowed to keep up its “peaceful revolution” in the state, a neighbour of Saudi Arabia and a US ally against al-Qaida. Meanwhile, two prominent members of Yemen’s ruling party resigned in protest over the killing of the protesters. Nasr Taha Mustafa, head of the state news agency, said he had resigned from his job and the party in protest over Friday’s killings of up to 45 protesters by rooftop snipers in the capital. Mohamed Saleh Qara’a, a prominent member of the ruling party, also stood down, citing the “completely unacceptable” violence against protesters. Their resignations follows that of Nabil Hasan al-Faqih, the tourism minister, who stood down on Friday. The bloodshed has prompted President Ali Abdullah Saleh, struggling to keep his grip on power after 32 years of rule, to declare a state of emergency for 30 days that restricts freedom of movement and the right to gather. It grants police greater leeway in carrying out inspections and arrests. Snipers opened fire from rooftops on crowds that flocked to a protest encampment at Sana’a University after prayers. Protesters said they had caught at least seven snipers carrying government identity cards, but Saleh denied this, blaming gunmen among the protesters for the violence. Yemen’s opposition said it could not negotiate with Saleh’s government after the bloodshed. “Sending tanks to the streets is a sign that the regime is in a state of panic. But Yemenis are determined to move forward with their peaceful revolution until the fall of the regime,” said opposition spokesman Mohammed al-Sabri. Saleh has rejected demands to step down immediately, promising instead to leave office when his term expires in 2013 and offering a new constitution giving more powers to parliament. Two out of every five Yemenis live on less than $2 (£1.23) per day. The government faces separatists in the south, maintains a shaky truce with rebels in the north and is fighting an aggressive local wing of al-Qaida. In the southern port city of Aden, police shot and wounded six protesters as they tried to disperse demonstrators holding a sit-in in a main street, residents said. “Tanks don’t scare us. They have killed dozens of us and hundreds were wounded. And we are not leaving until Ali Abdullah Saleh leaves,” said Abdullah Saif, one of the protesters. As Saleh’s government hardened its stance towards increasingly entrenched opposition, the US and France both condemned the violence on Friday. President Barack Obama urged authorities to protect peaceful protesters and said those responsible must be held accountable. Arab and Middle East protests Yemen Middle East guardian.co.uk

Posted by on March 19, 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.