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Thousands rally for south Yemen independence
[Al Ahram] Thousands demonstrated in south Yemen's main city Aden on Saturday to demand a return to independence, a day after President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi said only autonomy was on the table.The rally in central Parade Square came as southerners marked the anniversary of the end of British colonial rule in 1967, which created an independent state that lasted until union with the north in 1990. Demonstrators waved southern flags and banners proclaiming: "Yes to Freedom and Independence," and: "Our Goal is the Reclamation of Statehood." Security forces set up checkpoints across the city and on its outskirts to control the large number of demonstrators who poured in from adjacent provinces, but kept their distance from the rally itself. Fuad Rashed of the hardline, pro-independence wing of the Southern Movement, which organised the rally, told AFP: "We are determined to pursue our peaceful struggle to achieve our demand." At the end of the rally, organisers read out a statement calling on Yemen's oil-rich Gulf neighbours and the United Nations ...the Oyster Bay money pit... to help convene a "south-north dialogue under international supervision". Posted by: Fred 2013-12-01 |
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