Yemeni security forces have killed five demonstrators who have been marching against the government, CNN is reporting. Four of the victims were shot while gathering for a planned march in Sanaa, while the fifth was shot by a government sniper in a separate protest in the city of Taiz.
The woman is believed to be Aziza Othman Kaleb, who opposition activists have said was 20 years old and the first female to be killed while marching against the government. The Yemeni government hasn’t commented on the five new deaths, which come a day after at least 10 people were killed and 38 others were wounded in the capital.
Kaleb was brought to a hospital in Change Square, which has become the center of protests against President Ali Abdullah Saleh. There, protesters carried signs with various slogans, including “Saleh kills and the world watches. Is this the justice the west preaches?”
Aaron Snipe, the spokesman of the State Department’s Bureau of Near Eastern Affairs, urged Saleh to hand over power. “We are deeply concerned by recent violence in Yemen. We extend our deepest sympathies to those who lost loved ones as a result of this violence,” he said.
The government says it’s trying to find a solution to end the country’s political stalemate. Tareq Shami, the spokesman for Yemen’s ruling party, the General People’s Congress, said “The ruling party is serious on finding solution to the political crisis from its roots to ensure they don’t erupt in the future.”
Written by: Karen Benardello