Updated, Blast at Yemen Explosives Factory Kills 78

The blast happened after the factory was briefly taken over by militants and then looted by citizens.

SANAA, Mar 28, 2011- Yemen officials say 78 people were killed in a blast at an explosives factory after it was briefly taken over by militants and then looted by civilians.

Medical and security officials in the southern Abyan province where the blast took place Monday said many women and children from surrounding villages were killed and wounded in the attack.

On Sunday, Islamic fundamentalist militants took over the factory, which was near the town of Jaar and used to make explosives for road construction.

The militants took what they needed and then left. Locals then entered the facility to loot it, said officials.

Another 27 people were injured critically in addition to the dozens of others wounded.

Officials spoke on condition of anonymity because they were not authorized to speak to the press

Source: Associated Press

Blast kills 40 in Yemen ammo factory

Mon Mar 28, 2011

At least forty Yemenis have been killed and 55 others injured in an explosion that rocked an ammunition factory in the southern part of the Middle Eastern country.

The blast took place near the southern town of Jaar only one day after al-Qaeda militants looted the factory, AFP reported Monday.

"At least three bodies were taken out from the factory, while 55 others were wounded" a security official said.

Witnesses said around 30 armed and hooded suspected al-Qaeda fighters on Sunday raided the factory and left the scene immediately in four vehicles with cases of weapons.

On January 14, 2010, Yemen declared an open war against al-Qaeda, following the anti-terror military operations that started in 2001 in cooperation with the United States government.

The Middle Eastern nation has, since mid-February, been host to nationwide protests against the government of longtime President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

More than 80 people have been killed in the government crackdown since protests against Saleh's three-decade rule.

Source: Press T.V.

GCC says will respect choice of Yemeni people

By REUTERS

03/28/2011

RIYADH - Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries will respect the choice of Yemen's public as long as it supports security and stability, the secretary general of the political and economic bloc of Gulf countries said on Monday.

Tens of thousands of people have taken to the streets in the impoverished Arabian Peninsula state demanding President Ali Abdullah Saleh step down after ruling for 32 years.

"We respect the choices of the Yemeni people to support security and stability and national unity," Secretary-General Abdulrahman al-Attiyah said at a meeting in the Saudi capital.

Yemen is not part of the richer GCC, which includes Bahrain, Kuwait, Oman, Qatar, Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Amnesty International: Executions worldwide drop 25%

By Ed Payne, CNN

March 28, 2011

(CNN) -- Thirty one countries have abolished the death penalty but China, Iran, Saudi Arabia, the United States and Yemen remain amongst the most frequent executioners, according to a new report from Amnesty International released Monday.

The human rights organization officially recorded at least 527 executions in 2010, down from at least 714 in 2009.

The leading regions for executions, according to Amnesty, are Asia and the Middle East, with eight of the top 10 nations from those areas.

"While executions may be on the decline, a number of countries continue to pass death sentences for drug-related offenses, economic crimes, sexual relations between consenting adults and blasphemy -- violating international human rights law forbidding the use of the death penalty except for the most serious crimes," said Salil Shetty, the group's secretary general.

The totals in the Amnesty report exclude China, which carries out the death penalty more than the rest of the world combined.

"China is believed to have executed thousands in 2010 but continues to maintain its secrecy over its use of the death penalty," the Amnesty report said. "China used the death penalty in 2010 against thousands of people for a wide range of crimes that include non-violent offenses and after proceedings that did not meet international fair trial standards."

Chinese authorities could not immediately be reached for comment.

The human rights group flagged China, along with Egypt, Indonesia, Iran, Laos, Libya, Malaysia, Thailand, United Arab Emirates, Saudi Arabia and Yemen, on imposing death sentences for drug-related crimes.

Amnesty cited Iran, Pakistan, Saudi Arabia, Sudan, and the United Arab Emirates for executing people under the age of 18.

The United States carried out the fifth highest number of executions in 2010, with a total of 46. Sixteen states have abolished the death penalty. Illinois did so this year.

The level of public support for capital punishment in the United States has stayed relatively steady during the last decade, according to Gallup. Five out of the last 10 years, 64% of Americans have backed the death penalty in cases of murder. About three in 10 oppose executions.

Amnesty sees hope in the 25% decline in executions as the group pushes for abolishment.

"Any country that continues to execute is flying in the face of the fact that both human rights law and UN human rights bodies consistently hold that abolition should be the objective," Shetty said.

"A world free of the death penalty is not only possible, it is inevitable," he said. "The question is how long will it take?"

Center Urges to Freeze Yemeni Regime's Fortune

Sana'a, Mar 28, 2011- The Studies and Economic Media Center on Sunday urged Yemen's Attorney General and all Yemen's friends, especially the European Union and the U.S., to freeze the fortune of President Ali Abdullah Saleh and his relatives.
In its letter to the Attorney General, the Center also stressed to freeze the regime's stolen fortune in the Central Bank of Yemen including the movable assets, real estates, shares, various banknotes and companies.
Furthermore, it requested to list the senior officials loyal to Saleh, Ministers and corrupt officials and prevent them from travel.
As a civil society organization, the Center will pursue all those who were involved in corruption to recover the stolen properties to the public, it warned.
Source: Yemen Post

At Least 15 Injured as Pro-Saleh Thugs Attacks Ibb Demo

Ibb, Mar 28, 2011- At least 15 people including two women were injured when pro-government thugs attacked on Sunday a female demonstration in Ibb province demanding the ouster of President Saleh of Yemen.

The first of its kind protest in the province started afternoon calling for Saleh to resign and condemning his last threats.

Saleh has recently attacked the Joint Meeting Parties, the opposition coalition, amid the escalating anti-government protests across the republic, threatening to Somalize Yemen and warning Yemen call fall in civil war if those calling for his resignation insist on their demand.

The protesters also condemned the killing of the anti-Saleh protesters in Yemeni cities including those who were killed last Friday in the capital Sana'a, but while chanting anti-Saleh slogans the pro-government thugs threw rocks at the women and the protection committee injuring at least 15 people.

The thugs also confiscated the cameras of and severely attacked some journalists and correspondents.

Hundreds of thousands have been conducting protests and sit-ins in various cities to call for the departure of Saleh, who was to resign on Saturday.

President Saleh said yesterday there were talks over his exit but insisted on handing power to safe hands or the people, not to conspirers.

He said he was ready to step down right now as the public pressure mounts, but today he held the opposition full responsible for the consequences as the people are determined he and his family should leave their posts and the country.

Source: Yemen Post