At last count 52 had died from the attack on unarmed protesters at Change Square near Sana'a University last Friday. Heart-wrenching is the only word to describe the sight of the stream of dead and severely injured entering the made shift hospital set up in the Masjid out the front of the university. Some of them mouthing the shahada "La ilaha ila Allah" before passing away.
The Yemeni President has announced there will be an independant investigation into the incident, which is laughable and insulting. Independant indeed!
Most reports say the shooters were "balatajia" or hired thugs. Government supporters say it was Hameed al-Ahmar, which in my view is not possible, for anyone who knows anything about Hameed, whether he is aiming to become president or not, this action seen last Friday is not his style. At least the President didn't blame al-Qaeda.
As for reports that the shooters on top of apartment buildings lining the streets in the protest areas were snipers is debatable. The fact that most victims had head, neck, chest or shoulder injuries is not suprising if the shooters were on the roof of a multi-storey building shooting down at a crowded area. However, having said that, the report that Muhammad al-Shamiri an officer from 1st Armoured Division was shot in the head suggests that there may have been snipers aiming at 'defectors', especially considering that this particular army division recently refused orders to attack protestors (reported in al-Ghad newpaper, Yemen).
Word on the street says that the shooters were not residents of those buildings and entered without any invitation from them. This goes against Government claims that some shooters were disgruntled residents tired of the protests disrupting their lives. I know that some residents are afraid and tired of all the noise and attacks, but to go so far as to open fire is unlikely.
The goverment is bleeding high level personnel. Ministers, army officers, state media employees and Ambassadors are resigning over this bloody event.
Protesters have maintained their resolve and remaining patient and un-armed. It is well known to them that the President is trying to provoke them to fight back and thus hand the government legitimacy to open up and attack with force to clear out the protesters.
We are all making du'a that Yemen moves through this upheaval without anymore horrendous incidents. But many feel this is unlikely as military equipment and vehicles arrived at the Aden port from Saudi Arabia.
What happens next is anyone's guess. Let's all hope Saleh doesn't do a Gaddafi!
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