Yemeni opponents held a news conference at the IHH Humanitarian Relief Foundation headquarters in İstanbul’s Fatih district.
The news conference was attended by Yemeni Foreign Ministry’s Economy Undersecretary Abdullah Zindani, Yemeni Islamic Scholars’ Union representative Dr. Emin Ali Mukbel, Yemeni journalist Ibrahim Mujahid and academic Bekil Zindani.
Speaking at the news conference, Abdullah Zindani said there is a superficial democracy in Yemen and fraud in the elections. He said Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh wants to hand over the power to his son as he explained: “The public reaction against the administration emerged before the revolution in Tunisia but pressure imposed on the nation was preventing them to voice their reactions. Yet, the Tunisian revolution’s success encouraged us to take action.”
Zindani said the Yemeni administration accuses those voicing their demands for democracy of being al-Qaeda members in order to prevent people from making such demands, while noting that the administration sows seeds of fitna among the tribes in the country, prompting them to war with each other.
Following the revolution in Tunisia, the Yemeni people took to the streets to voice their demands for change, said Zindani. “Since then, our peaceful resistance goes on. Yemeni public is a society which is comprised of tribes and all of the tribes are armed tribes. Despite this, the members of the tribes came to the Change Square by leaving their weapons at home and they did not use guns to defend themselves against the bullets fired from the weapons of the state. Revolutionists have paid attention to keep the demonstrations peaceful. They kept their common sense despite attacks from the police,” he explained.
Zindani said they will never allow Yemeni revolution to change its course and be marred by violence because such a development will raise the prospects of a civil war.
Zindani also explained that Yemeni administration imposes economic blockade on the nation to block the revolution. “They have cut off supply of natural gas. The price of oil has increased by seven times. They have begun to stop supplying oil. An 18-hour-long power cut is imposed in the capital,” he said.
Demanding help from the Turkish government, Zindani said: “Turkey has intervened in significant developments in the Middle East. You have brothers and sisters in Yemen. There are the martyrs of the Ottoman Empire.” Zindani also said the Yemeni nation will defend themselves in case of an outside military intervention.
