San‘a, July 26: An anti-unity demonstration turned ugly in Yemen after armed men engaged in an exchange of fire with police forces, which left a protester dead.
The police used tear gas and opened fire at protesters after armed men from the crowd fired shots at policemen in the main street of the al-Dhalea city on Saturday.
Witnesses told DPA that at least one person was killed in the clashes and five others sustained injuries.
Meanwhile, hundreds of protesters took to the streets of al-Habileen city in a similar protest but they peacefully dispersed after three hours.
The demonstrators were seeking the release of those arrested in earlier protests while calling for the south of Yemen to become independent from the north.
Historically, Yemen’s north and south were separate countries until they were merged in 1990. Four years after the union, unified Yemen slinked into a 10-week-long civil war when southern leaders made an unsuccessful independence bid.
—-Agencies