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Two British and two American journalists were taken from their house in
Sana'a shortly after dawn and told to leave Yemen
* Tom Finn Sana'a
* guardian.co.uk, Monday 14 March 2011 19.45 GMT
Yemen has begun a clampdown on western media, arresting and deporting four
foreign journalists covering violent government attacks on protesters in
which seven people were killed over the weekend.
The journalists were taken from their house in Sana'a shortly after dawn,
when police from the interior ministry forced their way into the building
and confiscated their mobile phones and passports.
They were held for three hours at the immigration centre in Sana'a before
being told to pack their bags and leave the country immediately.
The four, all young freelancers for American newspapers, included two US
citizens – Haley Sweetland Edwards, who writes for the Los Angeles Times,
and Joshua Maricich, a photographer – and two Britons – Portia Walker, who
writes for the Washington Post, and Oliver Holmes, who writes for the Wall
Street Journal and Time magazine.
Speaking from Sana'a airport, Holmes, 24, said he had not been given an
explanation for the deportation but suspected it was because of their recent
reporting of the attacks on protesters.
With only a handful of foreign journalists remaining in the country,
analysts are worried the regime may be planning a severe crackdown on
protesters. "The deportation of these journalists along with the
increasingly violent assaults on protesters are extremely worrying. I think
a **Gaddafi-style** clampdown could be imminent," said Abdullah Al-Qahdi, a
professor of politics at Sana'a University. There have been daily
anti-government demonstrations in Sana'a and other cities around the country
since the former Egyptian president Hosni Mubarak was ousted on 11 February.
So far 40 people have been killed in the unrest, according to international
rights groups.
Fresh violence erupted on Monday when the governor of Marib, an eastern
desert province, was stabbed in the neck while trying to disperse
anti-government protesters, a local official said. Governor Ahmed Naji
al-Zaid was stabbed by a group of armed men who attacked his convoy. He is
said to be in a critical condition.
In Jowf, north-east of Sana'a, 40 protesters trying to storm the government
headquarters were wounded when security forces and pro-regime loyalists
guarding the building opened fire.
Monday's fighting followed a dramatic weekend in the capital. Seven people
were killed when riot police with water cannon, teargas, and rubber bullets
fired on anti-government protesters near Sana'a University.
Sami Zaid, a doctor from Islamic Relief, said plain-clothes civilians were
also involved in the shooting. There have also been reports of Yemeni
security forces abducting injured protesters from hospital for
interrogation.
"Two wounded individuals at the Saudi German hospital were arrested on
Saturday by national security men who arrived in civilian clothing," said
Abdulrahman Barman, a Yemeni human rights activist and a legal
representative of the protesters. "The hospital is morally and
professionally responsible for their arrest. They shouldn't allow any
patient to be removed from the premises illegally," he said.
**My emphasis - Arabs see the common connection between the processes in the
different countries.
-Matt
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