As Yemen’s blockade on southern Yemen enters its third week, stocks of food, medicine and oil have dwindled to dangerous levels. Prices have skyrocketed and already malnourished children bear the brunt of the military action.
The blockade began 17 days ago when the Western Armored Division established new checkpoints on roads and at city entrances preventing the flow of persons and commerce including food, medicine, oil and water. The blockade has cut off Radfan, Yafea, al Dhala, al Melah, al Habeelan, al Shaib, Gahaf, Lazarik, and parts of Shabwah.
The main road between Aden and al Dahlie is closed. Al Habaleen, Lahj was indiscriminately shelled three days ago after two soldiers were killed in an ambush. Another ambush in al Melah killed one soldier, and authorities have accused renegade elements of the southern independence movement with the attacks.
Nearly one thousand have fled Radfan, al Habaleen and al Bilah seeking safety. Like the 250,000 internally displaced by the Sa’ada War, these are mostly women and children. On May 24, a pregnant woman en route to a hospital in Aden was stopped at a military checkpoint and later died in childbirth.
Reports indicate a heavy military mobilization including tanks and armored personnel carriers. As during the Saada war, a total media blackout is in place, often accomplished by the arrest of southern journalists. An American journalist was expelled from Yemen last week after visiting Yafee, a center of southern resistance.
On May 22, the 20th anniversary of Yemeni unity, President Saleh announced the pardon of southern journalists and other political prisoners. Several high profile journalists were released, but others remain imprisoned and hundreds of others arrested during protests remain jailed.
Baggash Al Aghbari has been in prison since his arrest in 1994, despite several amnesties for southerners announced over the following decade. Al Aghbari was never charged or tried but was thought to be among the activists that triggered the civil war.
The southern independence movement began as a call for equal rights in 2007. As the state imprisoned thousands and police killed hundreds during peaceful demonstrations, the movement gained supporters and its goals evolved to calls for independence.
he northern Yemeni Arab Republic and the southern Peoples Democratic Republic of Yemen unified in 1990 and fought a brief civil war in 1994. Southerners claim unity was imposed by force in violation of the UN resolutions. Northern hegemony brought institutionalized discrimination more akin to occupation than unity that reached into areas of employment, education and development. However, the massive corruption of the Saleh regime means that all citizens outside the circle of elite power are subject to retribution by the state including the judiciary, police and civil service. All Yemenis suffer from the near absence of basic services arising from chronic mismanagement and insider infighting and embezzlement.
With a peace deal concluded in February ending the northern Sa’ada War, President Ali Abdullah Saleh heightened the military presence in the south. Yemen’s conduct of the Saada war generated 250,000 internal refugees with arbitrary aerial bombing of civilian areas and a strict blockade of food, medicine and international aid.
Human Rights Watch has called for an investigation into war crimes committed during the Saada war.
Yemen’s previous violations of international law related the southern protests include mass arbitrary arrests and the murder of hundreds of peaceful protesters, rights organizations charged. As tensions mounted over the last year, some northern merchants and travelers were targets of violence in southern areas
Comments
All thanks and respect for the writer, specializing in affairs; Yemen Jane Novak
south of yemen need ur help they are killing us on the road we really need pur help
All people in Southerners are so grateful to every word that supports them in their desire in achieving the right of self-determination. At the same time I am confident that the people in the North look forward to getting rid of Ali Saleh.
Thank you very much Jane Novak on your standing with the people of the South
You are the conscience of a humanitarian Her neighborhood does not accept injustice and Allst Again
Thank you very much Jane Novak
Greetings from every southern in South Arabia and around the world to the great Jane Novak,believe me If I say that all the southersns need people like you to write the truth about what is really going on in south arabia (South Yemen),my people wants the world to know that Yemeni president Ali Saleah is a real criminal and dictator just like Sadam Hussain,so please don't stop and keep writing until we are the arab southerns get our Independence someday,so than you so much Jane Novak and we are wish you the best...
Ibrahim
U.S.A
????? ??????? ??? ?????? ?????????
Injustice and corruption at all Yemenis and not in the south and by not being alone to do with what most of the South
With the unit and agree to change and is not split into two halves of Yemen in the Dali Lama and buttocks areas that supported her children on the general function of the state or have their areas of natural resources such as father or Shabwah or Hadramout and were in the last century, they ruled the south of
They came from communism and Marxism to Aden so that their history is very bad, dragged through their citizens and nationalized property and displaced people
In the seventies on charges of belonging to American imperialism with the southerners and the time can not even pronounce the word imperialism For this reason,
They did not find any Aharakjon in Dali south solidarity with them or help them for fear of separation and Serious things will go back into their own hands
Will not change my Zyoud monkeys Jane Novak
Thank you v.much from All south arabian people please don't stop we need you forever . saeed ba adlan .Shabwah s arabia
Thank you for your interest in the issue of the South Yemen. Please keep writing, you are of the few people who write the truth. We want an independent homeland from the northern occupation which killed us,displaced us and brought to us poverty, starvation and diseases.
Thanks for Jane Novak,
It's realy a very good pragraphes of true headlines that you written about the Human Crime against southern peoples.
Again thank you so much for telling the true and covering our news in details.
Best regards,
Hello jane
A bad situation in the south
The soldiers tanker ran over five people
and killed 2 of them and I puted links of video showing one of the dead to belive me but a message appear tell me that i can not put links, if you want the link you can search in " youtube" about " lFwS0JtJImA " or " lFwS0JtJImA "
thank you
Will all i have to say about which you write in this news was so truthful about saleh's gov. Also we the southern peoples are looking forward from you to speak more about Human Crime against southern peoples.
Best regards Jane Novak from all southern peoples to you.
I want to thank you for your effort made to convey the suffering of the south today
Precious sister Jane Novak Thank you for all the efforts that you have done to lift the injustice done to the people of South Arabia, who practiced against all kinds of murder and injustice, starvation, displacement ...
No, we love you sons of the south lot and that the name of all the sons of the south ...
Thank you very much ..
Dahane Mukayras ... South Arabia
Thank you for your interest in what is happening in South Arabia
Don't expect the world to care an iota if it can't blame Israel.
As the week unfolds the atrocities committed by the Sana'a regime towards the southern arabia busieged towns,cities and villages... in particular the systematic 3 weeks of sanctions against Radfan,Yaffa,Aldhalea, AlmALAH, Habilein, Shouib,Jahaf, and some areas in Shabwa...prohibiting entry of provisions, commutters, travellers, and goods and services to the already impoverished life of the people. All these area the Sana'a regime is using the iron-fist to suppress the peaceful protest and manifestation of grieviences against the dictatorship,land-grabbing and theft of southern wealth,marginalisation of the people from government employement - by the sana'a regime. Continuous bombardment of of Aldhalea using tankers, surface to surfacce artillery and kotyusha - destrying houses ....killing women and children - in the hope people will bow to the tyrannical Saddam - type scare tactic as done in Kurdistan. One thing this butcherer does not realise - he is a candidate to stand trial at Laha
thank you all the world should know that we are a human being and we have a right to die and say no to this kind of ruler just like all the free societies we learn from them how to live as a human being and we expect their help and support
Voice for the desprate,whose right is folded and the sinful hand that share oil money is hold a siciccor and working on the dead body under the blanket.Saleh,ray hunts,Total and nexen oxy omv dno and dove bush and daniel jamal
Got something to say?
Examiner.com is looking for writers, photographers, and videographers to join the fastest growing group of local insiders. If you are interested in growing your online rep apply to be an Examiner today!