Opposition, Security Forces Clash in Yemen

By Jack Phillips
Jul 13, 2011

Yemen security forces fought with the opposition in the restive city of Taiz, the country’s third largest, and thousands more demonstrated in Sana'a demanding a regime change, according to media reports.

Protesters have demonstrated for more than five months in the capital against President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has ruled the country for some 30 years.

Saleh and the protesters have been deadlocked in a stalemate over the past month as the president recuperates in Saudi Arabia after an assassination attempt that left him seriously injured. Last week, he appeared on state television and looked badly burned and heavily bandaged.

However, tribal militiamen in Taiz have clashed with security forces, leaving several injured. Yemen police also fired shots into the air to disperse around 5,000 people, reported Reuters.

U.S. officials have urged Saleh to step down from power to prevent further violence.

More than 19,000 Yemenites who attempted to cross into Saudi Arabia to flee the conflict were arrested in June, a spokesperson told The Associated Press on Wednesday.

Meanwhile, security forces have been battling in regions in the country’s south that have been overrun by Islamic militants. According to AP, five militants were killed in an airstrike in the towns of Jaar and Zinjibar.

Source: The Epoch Times.
Link: http://www.theepochtimes.com/n2/world/opposition-security-forces-clash-in-yemen-59060.html.