the Southern Flag raised in opening Ceremony of Yemen National Dialogue Conference

Reception Celebration of Young Southern Revolutionist - Feb 19,2012

Reception Celebration of Young Southern Revolutionist who came from Change Square in Sana'aa to Freedom and Independent Square in Mansoora district - Aden City. this to show their support to the demanding of Peaceful Southern Movement in getting Freedom and restoring the State of South Yemen.

Picture showing the size of demonstrations in Sana'a - March 14, 2011

Yemeni regime supporters in Sana'a

Armed Yemen loyalists pursue protesters

Observed by: Mr. Alaa Isam

Government loyalists armed with broken bottles, daggers and rocks chased down thousands of pro-reform demonstrators in Yemen's capital Monday, turning unrest inspired by Egypt's uprising increasingly violent.

Police who had been trying to keep the sides apart locked several thousand fleeing protesters inside the Sanaa University campus near where they had been holding their rally. Five people were wounded in the melee, an opposition source said.

"Hey Ali, get out, get out!" anti-government protesters shouted, referring to President Ali Abdullah Saleh, a U.S. ally against al Qaeda's resurgent Yemen-based wing who has been in power for over 30 years. "There is no solution except to leave."

Protests in impoverished Yemen have gained momentum in recent weeks, sometimes drawing tens of thousands of people, but have become more and more violent since Friday with clashes between protesters and police or pro-government groups.

The threat of turmoil in Yemen, already teetering on the brink of failed statehood, has pushed Saleh to offer significant concessions, including a pledge to step down in 2013 and an invitation to the opposition for a reconciliation dialogue.

Analysts have said Yemen is not yet at the point of an Egypt-style revolt, and any upheaval would likely unfold more slowly, and perhaps with more bloodshed, in a heavily armed country where tribal allegiances run strong.

"With our blood, we sacrifice for you Ali!" Saleh supporters chanted in Sanaa before violence erupted. Some of the several hundred loyalists who gathered held pictures of the man who has ruled Yemen for 32 years, and they waved Yemeni flags.

CLASHES IN TAIZ

Another 12 people were reported hurt south of Sanaa, where police fired shots into the air as hundreds of anti-government demonstrators clashed with Saleh supporters, witnesses said.

But police were unable to control the crowds in the agro-industrial town of Taiz, where thousands of protesters had held an overnight rally.

In the south, where the government faces al Qaeda militants and rising secessionist sentiment, hundreds of anti-government protesters marched in the port city of Aden, some throwing rocks and clashing with police. Security forces used batons to disperse the marchers, arresting five people, residents said.

The disturbances occurred while Saleh and a main opposition group were preparing for talks that the government hoped would help avert an Egypt-style revolt.

Saleh, under pressure from the United States to make good on promised reforms, postponed Sunday a U.S. trip scheduled for later in the month due to regional conditions.

Human Rights Watch criticised Yemeni police for what it described as unnecessary brutality against demonstrators, including the use of electroshock tasers.

"Without provocation, government security forces brutally beat and tasered peaceful demonstrators," said Sarah Leah Whitson, a regional director at the U.S.-based rights group

Amnesty International called on Yemen "to rein in its security forces immediately and stop excessive use of force."

Police have generally stayed out of the fray in Sanaa, while crackdowns have been stronger outside the capital.

But Sunday, police broke up an anti-government march to the presidential palace, sparking clashes in which police beat protesters with batons and protesters hurled rocks at police, witnesses said. Several journalists were briefly detained.

Even as it faces popular unrest, Yemen is also struggling to cement a cease-fire with Shi'ite Muslim insurgents in the north.

(Additional reporting by Mohammed Mokhashef in Aden; Writing by Erika Solomon; editing by Cynthia Johnston and Alastair Macdonald)

Source: http://yhoo.it/i460K2

Anti-Government Protesters Hit Streets Of Yemen

Observed by: Mr. Alaa Isam

Inspired by the revolution in Egypt and the uprising in Tunisia, close to a thousand demonstrators poured into the streets of Yemen’s capital on Saturday to continue protesting their government and a president who has already said he won't seek re-election. The demonstrations were mostly non-violent, but there were a few violent clashes between pro-government forces and opposition groups. Several of the protesters pulled out traditional tribal knives and shouted in anger as government forces approached; others threw rocks. The protests broke up Saturday after only a few hours.

Source: http://bit.ly/glxFAp

Yemeni government's supporters control Tahrir Square

Observed by: Mr. Alaa Isam

Security forces clashed with protesters in Tahrir Square in the capital Sana'a on Saturday while celebrating the resignation of former Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak and chanting slogans against the regime of President Saleh.

Demonstrators were marching towards the Egyptian Embassy in Jamal St., near Tahrir Square, when security forces dressed in civilian clothes and government supporters armed with traditional knives and sticks interrupted the march and assaulted some anti-government protesters, eyewitnesses told News Yemen.

A number of demonstrators were reportedly injured in the clashes.

Government's supporters have controlled Tahrir Square and set up tents in the whole area to prevent anti-government protests from gathering in the square like protesters in Egypt.

Friday night, hours after President Mubarak stepped down, massive protests took to streets in several Yemeni governorates celebrating “the success of the Egyptian revolution.”

Source: http://bit.ly/dSyORv

Armed Yemeni government supporters break up protest

Observed by: Mr. Alaa Isam

Government supporters armed with traditional knives and batons broke up a pro-democracy march on Saturday by 2,000 Yemenis inspired by the Egyptian uprising.

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, trying to ward off protests spreading across the Arab world, has promised to step down when his term ends in 2013, but the opposition has yet to respond to his call to join a unity government. The opposition wants talks to take place under Western or Gulf Arab auspices.

As well as sporadic protests, the Arabian Peninsula state is also struggling with a secessionist movement in the south, a shaky cease-fire with Shi'ite rebels in the north and a resurgent al Qaeda presence, all against a backdrop of chronic poverty.

Some 300 anti-government student demonstrators assembled at Sanaa University on Saturday morning. As numbers swelled into the thousands, they began marching towards the Egyptian embassy.

"The people want the fall of the government," protesters chanted. "A Yemeni revolution after the Egyptian revolution."

But a group of government supporters armed with knives and sticks confronted the protesters at the central Tahrir Square. Scuffles broke out and the pro-government activists used traditional knives and batons to force the anti-government protesters to flee.

Two people were lightly injured, witnesses said.

The clash came after armed men forced around 300 anti-government protesters to quit an impromptu demonstration in the Yemeni capital on Friday night.

Yemeni authorities detained at least 10 people after anti-government protesters in Sanaa celebrated Mubarak's downfall on Friday, U.S.-based Human Rights Watch said.

The group said the celebrations turned to clashes when hundreds of men armed with assault rifles, knives and sticks attacked the protesters while security forces stood by.

"The Yemeni security forces have a duty to protect peaceful protesters," said Sarah Leah Whitson, Middle East director at Human Rights Watch. "In this case, security forces seem to have organised armed men to attack the protesters."

Yemen's ruling party set up tents in Sanaa's central Tahrir Square last week to occupy the space and prevent people from gathering in large numbers.

Party officials handed out small amounts of money to reward pro-government protesters on Saturday. Some used the cash to buy food or Qat, a mild green stimulant leaf that more than half of Yemen's 23 million people chew daily and which has been cited as a deterrent to protest.

On Saturday, Yemen said it respected the choice of the Egyptian people and would support them in their search for progress and development.

(Reporting by Mohamed Sudam, Mohammed Ghobari and Khaled Abdallah; Writing by Martina Fuchs; Editing by Cynthia Johnston and Jon Hemming)

source: http://yhoo.it/dXr5sl

Youth Protests Group - Feb10

Written by: Mr. Alaa Isam

A group of Youth has established Facebook group to invite other Youth to join protests in Sana'a on Feb 10, 2011 .

More information, find it here : http://on.fb.me/erGQng

Yemen protests not major threat to regime: analysts

Observed by: Mr. Alaa Isam

Unlike uprisings in Tunisia and Egypt, protests in Yemen are not a major threat to its longtime leader, who has strong international backing and proven ability to survive crises, analysts say.

Tens of thousands of protesters turned out for a "day of rage" against President Ali Abdullah Saleh on Thursday, but tensions have since calmed and opposition groups are calling for the implementation of promised reforms -- without announcing more demonstrations.

"I don't see strong indicators that would suggest that they would be able to overthrow Saleh," said Ibrahim Sharqieh, deputy director of the Brookings Doha Center.

"The Yemeni opposition, they are able so far to start protests, but they are unable to maintain it, they are unable to maintain momentum," he said.

And while a large number of protesters turned out on Thursday, "the regime ... was able to send equal numbers of protesters in the street," Sharqieh said, adding that Saleh has faced and survived significant challenges in the past.

"Saleh is a smart guy, he's a survivor, he's managed to be in power in a very difficult country, in a very difficult situation for over 30 years, and this is not the first... crisis he is facing in the country."

Saleh has ruled without interruption through Cold War division, civil war, a rebellion in the north, a revived southern secessionist movement and an Al-Qaeda insurgency, among other threats.

He moved to calm opposition discontent on Wednesday, announcing that he would freeze proposed constitutional changes that would have enabled to remain president for life.

This was a "strong move on his side, and something that would help him," Sharqieh said.

Saleh has also said he is against hereditary rule, in response to suspicions he was grooming his son to succeed him, pledged that controversial April elections would be postponed, and announced new social security measures.

The opposition has demanded that Saleh make good on his promises, and that until he does so, it will keep boycotting parliament.

In Yemen, "these aren't broad-based protests like we see in Tunisia or Egypt," said Christopher Boucek, an associate in the Carnegie Middle East Program.

"I think what's going on ... is elite power players trying to jockey for position ahead of some kind of negotiation," he said.

"People are trying to maximise their positions ahead of that to get more concessions from the government before going out for some kind of settlement," Boucek added.

"Within Yemen, I don't think anybody really wants to see a revolution happen."

That also goes for the international community, he said.

"Nobody wants to see the Yemeni government fall. Regardless of what you think of President Saleh or his government, the international community needs this Yemeni government to fightterrorism."

"I think they (the regime) probably think they have it under control for the time being. I think they know the Americans are not going to push for big change, the Americans don't want to see him (Saleh) go," Boucek said.

In Yemen, the poorest country in the Arab world, where oil production is dwindling andunemployment is high, the economy poses a bigger threat, he said.

"At the end of the day ... the biggest threat to President Saleh is the economy," Boucek said. "That is what will destabilise the regime and threaten the state."

"The protests on Thursday were closer to party mobilisation than popular, and were not an expression of the popular will," said Ali Saif Hassan, the executive director of the Political Development Forum in Sanaa.

"The slogans were rehearsed, there were no women, and the protesters dispersed at an arranged time," he said.

That time, according to AFP correspondents, was in the early afternoon, when many Yemenis relax and chew qat leaves, a mild and wildly popular narcotic.

"The youth of Yemen, where 70 percent of the population is under 30, have every reason to be angry, because of poverty, unemployment," Hassan said.

"But at the same time, Yemen does not have a civil society with a national agenda capable of leading such a movement."

"The southerners have their agenda, as do the Huthis (Shiite rebels) in the north, or the Salafists (religious fundamentalists)," Hassan added. "Yemen has a better chance of disintegration" than a popular uprising.

Source: http://yhoo.it/dWz76J

Put words to action, Obama tells Yemen

Observed by: Mr. Alaa Isam

WASHINGTON, Feb. 4 (UPI) -- Washington welcomes political reforms promised this week in Yemen but stresses that pledges must be followed by concrete action, the White House said.

Protests continued in Yemen this week despite pledges by Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh that he wouldn't seek another term in office during elections set for 2013.

Political unrest is spilling over across the Middle East after a protest suicide sparked a revolution that brought down the government n Tunisia.

In an address to the Yemeni people this week, Saleh said "no to hereditary rule" and promised political reforms.

U.S. President Barack Obama spoke with the Yemeni president, urging him to "follow up his pledge with concrete actions," a White House statement read.

Anti-government demonstrators complained there was a "monopoly of power" in the Yemeni capital, while backers of Saleh, the only president of an independent Yemen, praised their leader for reaching out to the opposition.

Obama, the White House said, asked the Yemeni president to keep his security forces in check while Yemeni demonstrators exercised "their right to free association, assembly and speech."

Yemeni protests were described as relatively peaceful. At least eight people were killed this week in the political unrest in Egypt.

Read more: http://www.upi.com/Top_News/Special/2011/02/04/Put-words-to-action-Obama-tells-Yemen/UPI-83481296852443/#ixzz1D4kCwzOy

Map showing the location of pro- and anti-government demonstrations in Sanaa

Observed by: Mr. Alaa Isam

Source: http://yhoo.it/fmvNgA

Yemen weathers huge protests

Observed by: Mr. Alaa Isam

Yemen’s government weathered the biggest protests seen in the capital in decades on Thursday after the country’s strongman president made concessions to popular demands for his retirement.

Ali Abdullah Saleh, Yemen’s president, promised not to seek re-election in 2013, on the eve of an opposition organised “day of rage” demonstration. But he also mobilised groups of armed supporters to stage counter-protests and the security services stopped opposition sympathisers making it to the streets.

More than 20,000 people nonetheless defied threats and intimidation to demand Mr Saleh’s immediate resignation. Anti-government protesters who had gathered near Sanaa University chanted: “The people want regime change. No to corruption, no to dictatorship.”

Mr Saleh, an important US ally against al Qaeda, failed to pacify their demands with a pledge that he would not seek re-election in 2013. He had responded to earlier protests, which have been inspired by the Tunisian uprising that deposed President Zine El-Abidine Ben Ali, by promising his son would not be groomed for the presidency.

The Yemeni protesters had been planning to hold their rally in Sanaa’s Tahrir Square, which shares its name with the plaza in Cairo that has become the focal point for attempts to oust Hosni Mubarak, the Egyptian president.

But, raising fears of violence in one of the Middle East’s most volatile states, the square was occupied overnight by supporters of Mr Saleh, many of them carrying firearms and portraits of the president. They erected tents, suggesting that they planned to hold the square for a sustained period.

There were also large protests in southern towns where a separatist movement has grown increasingly active.

Many of the protesters demanded Mr Saleh’s immediate resignation. “What the president offered was just theatre, I don’t trust him,” said Mahmoud Abdullah in Sanaa.

At least 20 were arrested and clashes were reported between pro- and anti-government demonstrators.

Mr Saleh first emerged as leader of North Yemen in 1978. He has ruled the Republic of Yemen since the north and south merged in 1990.

Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh, his son, holds the rank of brigadier and has become increasingly visible in government affairs.

Source: http://bit.ly/eyEn11

Protests of Anger's Day in Sana'a - Feb3

Anger's Day in Yemen (Sana'a) - Feb3

Yemen Anger's Day in Sana'a - Feb3

Protests of Anger's Day in Sana'a - Feb3

Yemen "Day of Rage" draws tens of thousands

Observed by: Mr. Alaa Isam

Tens of thousands of Yemenis squared off in peaceful protests for and against the government on Thursday during an opposition-led "Day of Rage," a day after President Ali Abdullah Saleh offered to step down in 2013.

The peaceful protests faded out by midday as planned, suggesting Yemenis outside the traditional opposition activist core had not been motivated to transform the rally into a self-sustaining, Egyptian-style mass upheaval.

Still, the opposition drew more than 20,000 people in Sanaa, the biggest crowd since a wave of demonstrations hit the Arabian Peninsula state two weeks ago, inspired by protests that toppled Tunisia's ruler and threaten Egypt's president.

"The people want regime change," anti-government protesters shouted as they gathered near Sanaa University, a main rallying point. "No to corruption, no to dictatorship!"

Saleh, in power for 30 years but eying the unrest spreading in the Arab world, indicated on Wednesday he would leave office when his term ends in 2013. He pledged, among a host of other political concessions, that his son would not take over the reins of government.

It was Saleh's boldest gambit yet to stave off turmoil in Yemen, an important U.S. ally against al Qaeda, as he sought to avert a showdown with protesters in the impoverished state.

U.S. President Barack Obama, in a telephone call to Saleh on Wednesday, urged the Yemeni leader to follow up on his reform measures with "concrete actions," the White House said.

Across Yemen, tens of thousands of anti-government protesters took to the streets including in Taiz, where Saleh once served as military governor, and in southern towns where a separatist movement has grown increasingly active.

Yet analysts say only a large showing from traditionally non-aligned Yemenis and disgruntled youths, facing soaring unemployment and meagre incomes, would create a watershed moment for farther-reaching unrest in Yemen.

Scuffles broke out in the southern port city of Aden when security forces broke up a protest with tear gas, and two people were wounded. Hundreds of security men had deployed across the city, arresting 20, an opposition spokesman said.

Yemen's biggest opposition party, the Islamist Islah, welcomed Saleh's initiative but snubbed a presidential appeal to call off protests. But anti-government protesters appeared to lack consensus, with some calling for Saleh to get out while others wanted him to prove he would act on his promises.

"What the president offered yesterday was just theatre. I don't trust him," a protester, Mahmoud Abdullah, said in Sanaa.

ON THE BRINK

In most of the country, protests ended promptly at noon, with demonstrators dispersing quietly ahead of a customary break to chew qat, a narcotic leaf widely consumed in Yemen.

Should protests widen, the stakes would be high for Saleh. His country is on the brink of becoming a failed state, as it tries to fight a resurgent al Qaeda wing, quell separatism in the south and cement peace with Shi'ite rebels in the north.

"The danger for the government is that all these different strands of opposition ... coalesce not necessarily out of any sort of allegiance, but because they have the same political enemy. That becomes very dangerous for Saleh," said Gregory Johnsen, a Yemen analyst at Princeton University.

Abubakr al-Qirbi, Yemen's foreign minister, told BBC Radio that "serious dialogue" was needed now between the ruling and opposition parties. "We have never closed the door for their participation," Qirbi said.

Asked whether the unrest could be exploited by radical Islamists, he replied: "Any instability, not only in Yemen, whether it is in Egypt or Tunisia or in any other country, will play into the hands of extremists and terrorists. This is really why it is important to work with governments and opposition parties to make them realise that the objective of change is to create stability and not to create anarchy."

Saleh, a shrewd political survivor, has backed out of previous promises to step aside. Analysts say Wednesday's pledge could be a genuine way to exit gracefully but he may also hope to wait out regional unrest and reassert dominance another day.

Yemen's opposition coalition said it wanted assurances that reforms would be implemented, and demanded better living conditions for Yemenis, about 40 percent of whom live on less than $2 a day, while a third suffer from chronic hunger.

"Yemenis are angry about the situation, but haven't reached the level they have in Egypt," said Barak Barfi, Research Fellow for New America Foundation.

The United States relies heavily on Saleh to help combat al Qaeda's Yemen-based arm, which also targets neighbouring Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter.

Instability in Yemen would present serious political and security risks for Gulf states. Obama told Saleh during their Wednesday call it was "imperative that Yemen take forceful action" against al Qaeda, the White House said.

(Additional reporting by Erika Solomon in Dubai and Keith Weir in London; writing by Erika Solomon and Cynthia Johnston; editing by Mark Heinrich)

Source: http://yhoo.it/hU6Ljl

Tens of thousands of Yemenis demonstrate in Sanaa

Observed by: Mr. Alaa Isam

Tens of thousands of Yemenis staged a "day of rage" on Thursday calling for the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh, as a similar number of government loyalists held a counter protest in the capital.

"We are here to bring down a corrupt and tyrannical regime," Najib Ghanem, a lawmaker from the Islamist Al-Islah party that belongs to the Common Forum alliance of opposition parties, told anti-Saleh protesters at Sanaa University.

"The revolt for justice began in Tunisia. It continues today in Egypt, and Yemen tomorrow will be free from injustice," he said of the Tunisian president's fall and protests in Egypt seeking the departure of its president.

Addressing the massive crowd, Common Forum speakers all repeated the same message: the peaceful struggle will continue until the fall of an unjust regime.

The demonstration, the biggest since protests against Saleh's rule first erupted in mid-January, came despite the president saying on Wednesday that he would not seek another term and that he had postponed controversial April elections -- two key opposition demands.

Pro-Saleh demonstrators also came out in force, with tens of thousands -- about the same size of crowd as the anti-regime protesters -- gathering in Al-Tahrir Square to pledge their support for him.

"We are with Ali Abdullah Saleh. We are with Yemen," "The opposition wants to destroy Yemen" and "No to destruction, no to sedition," banners declared.

In Washington, the White House said on Thursday US President Barack Obama hailed political reforms in Yemen in a call to Saleh and urged a restrained response to demonstrations.

The call took place on Tuesday before Thursday's "day of rage." In it Obama praised Saleh, a key anti-terror ally who first became the target of political protests in mid-January, for saying that he would not seek another term.

Obama said Saleh now needed "to follow-up his pledge with concrete actions," the White House said in a statement.

The opposition's plans for Thursday were thrown into disarray when armed supporters of Saleh's General People's Congress late on Wednesday took over Al-Tahrir Square, the initial protest venue.

Protest organisers changed the location at the last minute to Sanaa University, about two kilometres (1.2 miles) from the square, but the switch did little to dampen the protesters' enthusiasm.

They swarmed to the university, carrying banners reading "The people demand a change" of regime, and "No to a hereditary regime, no to an extension of mandate," despite Saleh pledging he would seek neither.

Protesters expressed solidarity with demonstrators in Egypt who were on the 10th day of increasingly bloody protests against the regime of President Hosni Mubarak.

Facing increasingly angry demands to quit, Saleh on Wednesday announced he would not seek another term and would freeze plans to change the constitution that would have enabled him to remain president for life.

He also said he opposed hereditary rule, a response to suspicion that he was grooming his eldest son Ahmed Saleh, who commands an elite army unit, to succeed him.

Saleh also announced he would postpone controversial elections due in April and urged the government to take measures against unemployment and ordered that social security coverage be extended.

Mohammed al-Sabri of the Common Forum said on Wednesday that Saleh's call to stop protesting was "unacceptable," but said the group would "discuss the president's announcement."

"We are for total, serious and responsible dialogue, but not the dialogue offered by" Saleh, Sabri told AFP on Thursday.

"The president needs to implement practical measures on the ground.

"The people are fed up with corruption, with wars. We need a change in the situation. The people want freedom and fair elections," Sabri added.

Clashes erupted during previous protests against Saleh, including on January 29 when dozens of activists calling for his ouster battled regime supporters.

Thursday's demonstrations passed off peacefully, AFP correspondents said.

Hundreds of demonstrators tried to stage an anti-government march in Aden, the main port in south Yemen, but police fired tear gas and live ammunition to disperse them, wounding two people, witnesses said.

Thousands of people demonstrated in various southern towns, some responding to a call from the secessionist Southern Movement and others to an appeal from the Common Forum, witnesses said.

Meanwhile, Saleh's website, presidentsaleh.gov.ye, was inaccessible on Thursday following calls by a loose-knit group of online global hackers known as "Anonymous" for attacks on the site.

Source: http://yhoo.it/f7SLTM

3 Feb, the Revolution day in Yemen

More info about the event, click here:http://on.fb.me/g28dCs