A total of “1,030 members of the security forces were killed and wounded in 2010” while “defending security and stability and confronting terrorism, outlaws and crime,” a ministry statement said, giving a figure of 178 killed.
The statement referred to clashes with members of Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), and the separatist Southern Movement, spearheading opposition to the government.
Sanaa is also battling a sporadic rebellion in the north of the poverty-stricken country, but the statement did not say how many security force members died in the fight.
A second night of clashes and gun battles between the army and protesters in Yemen’s main southern city of Aden left seven people wounded, three of them soldiers, witnesses and officials said on Thursday.
Security forces used tear gas and gunfire to disperse the protesters who took to the streets until late Wednesday night in several Aden neighborhoods, the witnesses said.
Chanting pro-secessionist slogans, the protesters set car tires ablaze, blocked several roads and wounded a soldier when they hurled stones at the security forces, said one witness.
In Al-Saada neighborhood, two soldiers and a civilian were wounded in gun battles, a security official said.
During the protests, security forces arrested dozens of members of the Southern Movement, said an activist, Ahmed Al-Zubeiri.
Dozens of other protesters were rounded up during similar clashes in Aden on Tuesday, witnesses said.
Meanwhile, the Interior Ministry warned people against organizing or joining unlicensed demonstrations.
Lately, Sanaa and other Yemeni cities witnessed many demonstrations calling for copying the Tunisian-style in Yemen.
According to the law, anyone who wants to organize a demonstration or march should write to the relevant authorities three days before the actual day of the march notifying them about the demonstrations’ day and date, routes, aims and reasons and the slogans.
The source indicated that the law granted security forces the right to disperse any protest if it deviated from its goals or if seditious speeches were made. The organizers and participants of unauthorized protests are also liable to imprisonments and fines.
— With input from agencies
