46 Killed in Violent Yemen Crackdown

Saleh Declares 'State of Emergency' as Minister Resigns

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has announced a “state of emergency” Friday, following a brutal crackdown against protesters in the capital city of Sanaa left at least 46 people dead and hundreds of others wounded.

The protesters have been demanding Saleh resign for weeks, and today’s crackdowns were the most violent yet, with government snipers reportedly firing into the crowd from rooftops. Tens of thousands of protesters were reported in Sanaa alone, with other major protests reported nationwide.

Today’s crackdown also led to the first high profile government resignation, with Tourism Minister Nabil Hasan al-Faqih announcing that he has resigned from the cabinet to protest the “events the country is going through.”

President Saleh, however, appears to be remaining completely unmoved by the mass protests, insisting that despite accounts from journalists on the scene none of the shootings were from government forces and insisting he would “investigate” the incidents.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.