Affrontements à Amman : un mort – 25 mars 2011

Affrontements lors des manifestations en Jordanie

nouvelobs.com

25 03 2011

AMMAN (AP) — Un personne a été tuée et une centaine d’autres ont été blessées vendredi en Jordanie: des batailles rangées ont opposé, à coups de jets de pierres, manifestants réclamant des réformes et partisans du gouvernement, avant l’intervention des forces de l’ordre.

La police a tiré au canon à eau pour disperser la foule, puis des centaines d’hommes en tenue anti-émeutes ont investi les lieux, tabassant les manifestants et entraînant une vingtaine d’entre eux dans un bâtiment public non loin de là. C’est au cours de cette intervention qu’un manifestant est mort.

Ces affrontements étaient les plus violents en plus de deux mois de manifestations, faisant un mort pour la première fois.

Les forces de l’ordre ont annoncé avoir arrêté des manifestants des deux camps, sans en fournir le nombre exact. De sources hospitalières, on faisait état de plus de 100 personnes reçues à l’hôpital avec des blessures de diverses gravité. Lire la suite…

Man dies, 130 injured in Jordan clashes

AFP

25 03 2011

By Musa Hattar (AFP)

AMMAN — A man died and 130 people were injured on Friday as pro-reform protesters and government supporters clashed in Amman, in what the prime minister said was an Islamist attempt to « create chaos. »

« Khairy Saad Jamil, 55, died today at the Prince Hamzeh Hospital » in Amman, a medical source told AFP without specifying the cause of death.

It was the first death since the outbreak of pro-reform protests in Jordan three months ago.

Another medical source at the hospital said the man had « received blows to his chest, and his teeth were broken. »

But police chief Hussein Majali told a news conference that Jamil « died of a heart attack ».

« There were no signs of beating on his body, » he said.

Jamil’s son insisted that his unemployed father « got several blows to his body, leading to his death. »

« Our family is in the hospital now. We will not move until officials come to us and explain what really happened, » he said.

There were conflicting reports on the number of people injured.

A medical source said 130 people, including a policeman, were injured in the clashes, including two in « critical condition. »

However, police said in a statement « 60 civilians and 58 members of police, including a sergeant and a captain were injured. All of them were hospitalised. »

« The security forces had to put an end to the gathering after the two sides clashed, » the statement said.

« Attempts by Amman’s governor to calm things down through dialogue have failed and provocations and stone-throwing from both sides continued, prompting police intervention. »

An AFP journalist at the scene said police used water cannons to break up clashes between students protesting to demand reforms and government supporters.

« Police arrested eight people from the two sides for interrogation. An investigation is currently under way, » Majali said, after anti-riot police broke up a protest camp for the students.

The clashes erupted after around 200 government supporters hurled large stones at more than 2,000 young demonstrators from different movements, including the powerful Islamist opposition, urging regime reforms and more efforts to fight corruption, an AFP journalist reported.

Blood stains could be seen at the site of the demonstration next to Amman’s Interior Circle, or Gamal Abdel Nasser Square. Read more…