UNICEF: 750,000 Yemeni children malnourished
By AHMED AL-HAJ and MAGGIE MICHAEL
(January 24th, 2012 _at_ 5:46am)
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A female protestor, center, holds a banner with writing in Arabic that
reads,"welcome Tawakkul, we are waiting for you," during a rally welcoming
home Nobel laureate Tawakkul Karman after her travels abroad in Sanaa,
Yemen, Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)
A female protestor, center, holds a banner with writing in Arabic that
reads,"welcome Tawakkul, we are waiting for you," during a rally welcoming
home Nobel laureate Tawakkul Karman after her travels abroad in Sanaa,
Yemen, Thursday, Jan. 19, 2012. (AP Photo/Hani Mohammed)
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SANAA, Yemen (AP) - The United Nations Children's Fund says around 750,000
children under 5 years old suffer from malnutrition in Yemen.
UNICEF director for Middle East and North Africa, Maria Calivis, says that
in some regions, a year of political turmoil has nearly doubled the number
of malnourished children.
She told The Associated Press that the numbers cross the "emergency
threshhold," an international standard calling for urgent action.
UNICEF also says 300,000 Yemeni children are now internal refugees. Yemen
has for years experienced localized insurgencies, and the number of
displaced people has increased during the year-long uprising against
authoritarian President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
The country of 20 million is the most impoverished in the Arab world.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information.
AP's earlier story is below.
SANAA, Yemen (AP)- The departure of leader Ali Abdullah Saleh for medical
treatment is doing little to calm Yemen- the opposition movement is
skeptical that he'll stay away and many are looking to presidential
elections as the real test of regime change.
A wave of mutinies against the air force commander provided the latest
example of how Yemenis are impatient for reform and how tenuous the security
situation remains in the key U.S. ally in the fight against al-Qaida.
"The post-Saleh era has not started yet," said political activist Habib
al-Ariqi. "His family, his interest groups, those who benefited from him for
years and years still hold the strings of power."
Yemen's nearly year-old uprising has taken a different path from other
revolts across the Arab world. After months of mass protests demanding
Saleh's ouster and mounting international pressure, the president signed a
deal brokered by Yemen's Gulf neighbors and backed by the U.S. to pass power
to his vice president. That is the first step in a process meant to give the
country a new constitution, president and elected parliament.
To persuade Saleh to sign, a clause protecting him and those associated with
his government from prosecution was added. Diplomats involved in the process
have said the deal wouldn't have gone through without it.
Some in Yemen suspect Saleh is still trying to slip out of the deal and stay
in power, even if it's behind the scenes.
Despite the concerns, tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets in
cities nationwide Monday to welcome Saleh's exit and warn the remnants of
his regime against trying to hold on to power.
"Saleh left the country, he will be followed by the soldiers and the sons,"
protesters chanted as they marched in Taiz. In the central city of Bayda,
they shouted, "we have achieved our goal." And in the southern city of Ibb,
tens of thousands chanted, "to the world, we are send you Ali, the terrorism
maker."
Saleh flew to Oman late Sunday in the first stop of a trip that is to
eventually take him to the U.S. for medical treatment, some two months after
signing the deal to pass power to his vice president, Abed Rabbo Mansour
Hadi.
U.S. officials said the Yemeni leader would travel to New York this week,
and probably stay in the country until no later than the end of February.
U.S. officials believe Saleh's exit from Yemen could lower the risk of
disruptions in the lead-up to presidential elections planned there on Feb.
21.
The leader was badly burned during a June attack on his compound in Yemen.
He received medical treatment in neighboring Saudi Arabia for three months.
American officials had hoped he would remain there, but the Yemeni leader
returned home and violence worsened anew.
Saleh, who maintained power for more than 30 years through a mixture of
political acumen, manipulation, patronage and violence, has emerged in the
best position so far of the autocratic Arab leaders who have been ousted
since a wave of revolutions began last year.
Tunisia's former leader, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, fled to Saudi Arabia and
has been convicted in absentia for corruption and other crimes during his
regime. Egypt's Hosni Mubarak is on trial and faces a possible death
penalty, and ex-Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi was killed after being
captured by rebels in October.
The outgoing Yemeni president's farewell speech on Sunday raised new
concerns among protesters who have rejected the immunity clause, saying
Saleh must face justice for his alleged role in a brutal crackdown that
rights group say has killed some 200 protesters since it began last January.
In his speech, Saleh said he had transferred all responsibility to Hadi, but
he also promised to return to Yemen before the elections as the head of his
party.
Moreover, the power-sharing deal includes Saleh's party as part of national
unity government with a share of ministerial portfolios. Even the ministries
run by the opposition include high ranking officials who are members of
Saleh's party.
Saleh also has left behind family members and staunch loyalists who belong
to his tribe and who are still holding key and influential positions in the
military and the government.
Saleh's son, Ahmed, commands the powerful Special Forces and Republican
Guard which field the most highly trained troops to be deployed to the
streets to crush protests. The other top internal security forces are under
the command of the president's nephews, Tareq, Yahia and Ammar. All are
better equipped than the regular military, parts of which have defected to
join the protesters.
That has led to power struggles and delayed reforms within state
institutions. Violence also has persisted, and al-Qaida's active Yemen
branch has taken advantage of the political instability to increase its
foothold.
The insecurity was underscored over the weekend by a wave of mutinies, which
spread to four air bases by Monday, as lower ranking airmen demanded the
ouster of the country's air force commander, Maj. Gen. Mohammed Saleh, the
president's half brother.
Col. Mohammed al-Qubati at the air base in the capital Sanaa said about 200
airmen were continuing a protest they started Sunday. They were pushed from
the air base by loyalist troops but moved into the city, protesting at
Hadi's nearby residence. Officers said that the garrisons of two more bases,
at Taiz in the south and at Hodeida in the west, were also protesting.
"No to injustice, no to dictatorship, no to corruption," read one banner
hanging on Al Anad's walls.
In a sign of the difficulties in uprooting Saleh's influence, Yemen's
official news agency continued to call him "His highness, the brother, the
president of the republic" on Monday. The agency is run by the top media
official of Saleh's General People's Congress party, Tarek al-Shami.
Key public sector companies like the main supplier of fuel, The National Oil
company and tobacco company also are run by Saleh's in-laws.
"Only when we name a president will change start, and then we can talk about
the post-Saleh era," al-Ariqi said.
___
Michael reported from Cairo.
UNICEF: 750,000 Yemeni children malnourished
By AHMED AL-HAJ and MAGGIE MICHAEL
(January 24th, 2012 _at_ 5:46am)
SANAA, Yemen (AP) - The United Nations Children's Fund says around 750,000
children under 5 years old suffer from malnutrition in Yemen.
UNICEF director for Middle East and North Africa, Maria Calivis, says that
in some regions, a year of political turmoil has nearly doubled the number
of malnourished children.
She told The Associated Press that the numbers cross the "emergency
threshhold," an international standard calling for urgent action.
UNICEF also says 300,000 Yemeni children are now internal refugees. Yemen
has for years experienced localized insurgencies, and the number of
displaced people has increased during the year-long uprising against
authoritarian President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
The country of 20 million is the most impoverished in the Arab world.
THIS IS A BREAKING NEWS UPDATE. Check back soon for further information.
AP's earlier story is below.
SANAA, Yemen (AP)- The departure of leader Ali Abdullah Saleh for medical
treatment is doing little to calm Yemen- the opposition movement is
skeptical that he'll stay away and many are looking to presidential
elections as the real test of regime change.
A wave of mutinies against the air force commander provided the latest
example of how Yemenis are impatient for reform and how tenuous the security
situation remains in the key U.S. ally in the fight against al-Qaida.
"The post-Saleh era has not started yet," said political activist Habib
al-Ariqi. "His family, his interest groups, those who benefited from him for
years and years still hold the strings of power."
Yemen's nearly year-old uprising has taken a different path from other
revolts across the Arab world. After months of mass protests demanding
Saleh's ouster and mounting international pressure, the president signed a
deal brokered by Yemen's Gulf neighbors and backed by the U.S. to pass power
to his vice president. That is the first step in a process meant to give the
country a new constitution, president and elected parliament.
To persuade Saleh to sign, a clause protecting him and those associated with
his government from prosecution was added. Diplomats involved in the process
have said the deal wouldn't have gone through without it.
Some in Yemen suspect Saleh is still trying to slip out of the deal and stay
in power, even if it's behind the scenes.
Despite the concerns, tens of thousands of protesters took to the streets in
cities nationwide Monday to welcome Saleh's exit and warn the remnants of
his regime against trying to hold on to power.
"Saleh left the country, he will be followed by the soldiers and the sons,"
protesters chanted as they marched in Taiz. In the central city of Bayda,
they shouted, "we have achieved our goal." And in the southern city of Ibb,
tens of thousands chanted, "to the world, we are send you Ali, the terrorism
maker."
Saleh flew to Oman late Sunday in the first stop of a trip that is to
eventually take him to the U.S. for medical treatment, some two months after
signing the deal to pass power to his vice president, Abed Rabbo Mansour
Hadi.
U.S. officials said the Yemeni leader would travel to New York this week,
and probably stay in the country until no later than the end of February.
U.S. officials believe Saleh's exit from Yemen could lower the risk of
disruptions in the lead-up to presidential elections planned there on Feb.
21.
The leader was badly burned during a June attack on his compound in Yemen.
He received medical treatment in neighboring Saudi Arabia for three months.
American officials had hoped he would remain there, but the Yemeni leader
returned home and violence worsened anew.
Saleh, who maintained power for more than 30 years through a mixture of
political acumen, manipulation, patronage and violence, has emerged in the
best position so far of the autocratic Arab leaders who have been ousted
since a wave of revolutions began last year.
Tunisia's former leader, Zine El Abidine Ben Ali, fled to Saudi Arabia and
has been convicted in absentia for corruption and other crimes during his
regime. Egypt's Hosni Mubarak is on trial and faces a possible death
penalty, and ex-Libyan leader Moammar Gadhafi was killed after being
captured by rebels in October.
The outgoing Yemeni president's farewell speech on Sunday raised new
concerns among protesters who have rejected the immunity clause, saying
Saleh must face justice for his alleged role in a brutal crackdown that
rights group say has killed some 200 protesters since it began last January.
In his speech, Saleh said he had transferred all responsibility to Hadi, but
he also promised to return to Yemen before the elections as the head of his
party.
Moreover, the power-sharing deal includes Saleh's party as part of national
unity government with a share of ministerial portfolios. Even the ministries
run by the opposition include high ranking officials who are members of
Saleh's party.
Saleh also has left behind family members and staunch loyalists who belong
to his tribe and who are still holding key and influential positions in the
military and the government.
Saleh's son, Ahmed, commands the powerful Special Forces and Republican
Guard which field the most highly trained troops to be deployed to the
streets to crush protests. The other top internal security forces are under
the command of the president's nephews, Tareq, Yahia and Ammar. All are
better equipped than the regular military, parts of which have defected to
join the protesters.
That has led to power struggles and delayed reforms within state
institutions. Violence also has persisted, and al-Qaida's active Yemen
branch has taken advantage of the political instability to increase its
foothold.
The insecurity was underscored over the weekend by a wave of mutinies, which
spread to four air bases by Monday, as lower ranking airmen demanded the
ouster of the country's air force commander, Maj. Gen. Mohammed Saleh, the
president's half brother.
Col. Mohammed al-Qubati at the air base in the capital Sanaa said about 200
airmen were continuing a protest they started Sunday. They were pushed from
the air base by loyalist troops but moved into the city, protesting at
Hadi's nearby residence. Officers said that the garrisons of two more bases,
at Taiz in the south and at Hodeida in the west, were also protesting.
"No to injustice, no to dictatorship, no to corruption," read one banner
hanging on Al Anad's walls.
In a sign of the difficulties in uprooting Saleh's influence, Yemen's
official news agency continued to call him "His highness, the brother, the
president of the republic" on Monday. The agency is run by the top media
official of Saleh's General People's Congress party, Tarek al-Shami.
Key public sector companies like the main supplier of fuel, The National Oil
company and tobacco company also are run by Saleh's in-laws.
"Only when we name a president will change start, and then we can talk about
the post-Saleh era," al-Ariqi said.
___
Michael reported from Cairo.
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Received on Tue Jan 24 2012 - 07:56:10 EST
