Affrontements à Harf Sufyan et Al Baeda : 3 morts – 4 mars 2011

Pro-, anti-gov’t clashes in Yemen injure 5

Upi.com

March. 4, 2011 at 8:18 PM

Yemeni protesters chant slogans calling for ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh during a massive anti-regime rally in the capital Sanaa, Yemen on March 3, 2011 as Yemen’s opposition and clerics offered Saleh a smooth exit from power by the end of this year. UPI/Mohammad Abdullah

SANAA, Yemen, March 4 (UPI) — Clashes between pro- and anti-government protesters Friday in al-Baeda, Yemen, injured at least five people, including a child, local officials said.

The fighting broke out when pro-government protesters attacked a rally of anti-government protesters who have been demanding the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, who has ruled the country since 1978, The Yemen Post reported. Witnesses told the Post batons, knives and guns were used in the fighting. Read more…

At least 3 dead in Yemen clash as tens of thousands protest Saleh’s rule

washingtonpost.com

By Portia Walker

Friday, March 4, 2011

SANAA, YEMEN – Tens of thousands of Yemenis took to the streets Friday to protest the 33-year rule of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, as violence in a restive northern town left at least three people dead.

Members of a rebel Shiite group said they were holding a peaceful demonstration in the town of Harf Sufyan when they were attacked by government forces. The attack left three people dead and seven injured, according to Abu Hashem, a spokesman for the group.

The government disputed that account, saying that an armed group of men had attempted to overrun a military checkpoint, and that seven people were injured in the resulting clashes. The government said there were no peaceful demonstrations in the vicinity of the checkpoint.

Friday’s demonstrations were focused in the capital, Sanaa, and in other major cities. Demonstrators in Yemen are calling for Saleh to leave office immediately, but he has shown no sign of budging.

The protests have, for the time being, united formerly disparate anti-government groups, including a separatist movement in the south and rebel tribes in the north.

Harf Sufyan, the scene of Friday’s clashes, has long been the stage for fighting between Houthis, a Shiite rebel group, and government forces. The Houthis said late last month that they would put their guns down and join the peaceful calls for Saleh’s resignation.

« It’s a big change when the Houthis are marching and when the Southern Movement are asking for regime change, » said Khalid al-Anisi, a Sanaa-based human rights activist and a key figure in the anti-government movement. « This is our historic moment to make a change. » Read more…