Armies of Liberation

A Yemeni Parliamentary committee issued a report in 2006 naming 26 persons who illegally profited from land confiscated in Aden following Yemen’s 1994 civil war. The list includes Members of Parliament and the Shoura Council, military and security force commanders, current and former judges and ministers. The Parliamentary committee recommended that the land owners receive compensation for their losses, however none has been paid.

The following is a translation of the document that includes a description of the individual’s position in brackets for the readers’ benefit:

LIST OF THE NAMES AND AREAS OF INDIVIDUALS WHO RECIEVED CONTRACTS FROM THE GOVERNORATE LEADERSHIP AND PREVIOUS MANAGER OF INTERIOR TRADING CORPORATION (HUSSEIN NASER OMAYER), ACCORDING TO THE (PARLIAMENTARY) FIELD SURVEY.

NAME (CURRENT POSITION) AREA DISPOSITION

1 NASER MANSOOR HADI
(The brother of Yemeni Vice President, Abdo Rabo Mansour Hadi, and Agent of Political Security Forces of Aden,Lahj and Abyan governorates)
received 4.6 ACRES,
sold to ALI SOLAIMAN DAHSH 2 ACRES, and ALAWADHI 3 ACRES

2 HUSIEN NASER OMAYER
(Previous general manager of Interior Trading Company in south)
received 20 ACRES
SOLD TO Gamal Qasem 7 acres, Salem Balfaqeh 2 acres, Abdul baset 1 acre

3 MUHAMMED SALEH AL-MOHAMMADI
received 3.0 ACRES
SOLD TO SADEQ ABDO MOHAMMED 3.0 ACRES

4 MOHAMMED SALEH TUREIQ
(General Manager of Sa’ada Security Forces, former GM of Aden Security.)
received 5.3 ACRES
SOLD TO GAMAL QASEM 5.0 ACRES

5 BELAL ALI MOHSEN
received 4.8 ACRES

6 MOAAD TAHA GHANEM
(Son of the former governor of Aden) Taha Ghanem
received 3.7 ACRES SOLD TO ALI AL-YAMANI

7 ABDULLA AHMED GHANEM
(Member of al-Shoura Council, formerly Minister of Legal Affairs)
received 8.3 ACRES
SOLD TO ALI AL-YAMANI

8 TAHA HUSEIN NASER OMAYER
(Son of Hussain Naser Omayer )
received 2.1 ACRES
SOLD TO ALI AL-YAMANI

9 WALEED AL-FADHLI
received 3.0 ACRES
SOLD TO ALI AL-HAG AHMED AND HIS PARTNER

10 ALI SHEIKH OMER
received 2.8 ACRES
SOLD TO AL-QERN TRADING CORPORATION

11 MOHAMED ALI SALEM AL-SHADDADI
(Member of Parliament)
received 3.3 ACRES

12 HUSEIN MOHAMMED ARAB
(Member of al-Shoura Council, previously the Minister of Interior Affairs)
received 2.7 ACRES
SOLD TO ALI SALEH AL-AWADHI

13 FAISAL RAGAB
(High ranking military commander)
1.0 ACRE SOAM + WALL

14 ABDUL-QAREEM SHAEF
(General Secretary of conference party in Aden governorate)
offered 1.0 ACRE SOAM + WALL
REFUSED

15 FAHEEM ABDULLA MOHSEN
(Chief Justice of Sana’a Commercial Court, previously Chief Justice of Aden Commercial Court)
1.0 ACRE SOAM + WALL SOLD TO NOR AL-DIN FAKHRI

16 RASHEED HOWAIDI
(Justice serving on the Republic High court, previously Chief Justice of Aden Appeal court, )
received 1.2 ACRES SOAM + WALL
SOLD TO ALI GAMAL QASEM

17 SALEH AL-AMMARI
(former judge in Aden Appeals Court)
received 1.1 ACRES SOAM + WALL
SOLD TO MOHAMMED BA-HASHWAN

18 NOR AL-DEEN FAKHRI
(former General Manager of Yemeni Port Authority)
received 0.9 ACRE WALL + VILLA

19 MOHAMED AHMED ALKHAILA
received 0.86 ACRE WHITE LAND

20 MOHAMED ABDULLA AL-BATANI
(Member of al-Shoura Council, previously Minister of Interior)
received 0.86 ACRE WHITE LAND

21 AHMED ABOBAKER AL-SOMAHI
received 0.86 ACRE WHITE LAND

22 ALI AHMED AL-SEIAGHI
(Vice minister of trade)
received 0.86 ACRE WHITE LAND

23 FARID MOGAWAR
(previous General Manager of Fish Wealth)
received 0.86 ACRE WHITE LAND

24 MAHDI ABD AL-SALAM
(General Manager of Taiz Education, previously General Manager of Aden Education)
received 0.86 ACRE WHITE LAND

25 MOHAMMED GOMEA AL KHADHER
(previous General Manager of Aden International Airport, dismissed)
received 0.86 ACRE WHITE LAND

26 MANSOOR SALEH BASORRA
received 0.86 ACRE WHITE LAND

27 SHADWAN AL-MOHAMADI
received 2 ACRES WALL

TOTAL 80.4 ACRES

ADDITIONAL REMARKS ABOUT LIST OF 26:
1. ADDED NAME OF SHADWAN AL- MOHAMMADI IN AREA (2) ACRES TO LIST OF (26).
2. THE TOTAL AREAS ACCORDING TO FIELD SURVEYING (ON FIELD = 80.4 ACRES).
3. THE AREAS ACCORDING TO THE LIST OF INSTRUCTION = 102.0 ACRES.
4. THE DIFFERENT BETWEEN FIELD SURVEYING AND INSTRUCTION

Yemen Times, good article:

The development of the real estate industry in Yemen a complicated issue, while we see land disputes filling commercial courts and we hear about the associated risk of investing in real estate, apart from the increasing costs of Cement and Steel which raise the cost of such investments, population growth especially in urban centers result in enormous stress on the real estate industry. YemenTimes has interviewed the published of Yemen’s first real state magazine and asked him a few questions around the subject.

Can you brief us on Al-Aqaria tabloid and its scope of work?

Al-Aqaria magazine is the first publication in Yemen concerned with the real estate and construction sector in Yemen, published by Future legacy company. Since the establishment of the publication in 2007, two pilot issues has come out, and starting January 2008, the magazine will be issued on monthly bases, due to the high demand on the magazine. We also plan publishing special supplements which on specific areas or for specific activities such as lease, purchase and constructions. (Read on …)

Aden’s landowners demonstrated at the offices of Aden’s governor on Saturday demanding past due compensation for their buildings destroyed last year on the governor’s orders.

The landowners from the Dar-Saad district held their protest at the offices of Governor Mohammed Ahmed al-Kahlani. The demonstrators urged the governorate’s leadership to execute the Council of Parliament’s recommendations issued August 14, 2007 and the Yemeni ministers’ council decision no. 264 also issued in August 2007.

The Economic Military Corporation and local council destroyed the landowners’ construction, buildings and factories on Nov. 30, 2006 on Governor al-Kahlani’s orders. The recommendation of the Council of Parliament directed the governor to compensate all persons who suffered property damage or lost their assets, including all those able to produce documentation proving ownership of the land.

In a follow-up, AOL will publish the list of the 26 “influential persons” who re-sold the confiscated lands to the current owners.

Because its the ‘influential people” who are stealing the land

Yemen Times

SANA’A, July 26 — The Yemeni Parliament admitted failing to oblige the government to ensure the specific mechanism for handling the pending investment issues. It brought this issue in a Parliamentarian session on third week of July on investment stating that it couldn’t pressure on the government to develop a strategy to protect investors from the frequent aggressions on their properties, especially, in Aden’s Free Zone.

It was confirmed that the Parliament has granted Abdulqader Helal, Minister of the Local Administration, along with the local authorities in Eden the opportunity to coordinate with the Services Committee in the parliament to find solutions for the problems resulted from removing and destroying citizens’ and investors’ establishments in Dar Sa’ad, Aden.

The Parliament’s decision was due because of a demand, from the Minister of Local Administration, who was attending the Parliament’s session for discussing the concerned matter, to find practical solutions for these problems and present them to the Parliament on the coming Saturday.

On the other hand, Ansaf Mayo, the reformation representative, criticized the Services Committee for hiding some of the facts in its report and considered the Committee deliberate for doing that.

Mayo added that the recommendations of the Committee didn’t scale the level of the notices which reach its claim with reference the court. He also called for shouldering the responsibility to bring justice for citizens, compensating them well and fixing their rights in land-ownerships.

Mayo emphasized the necessity of the Parliament’s stand against the documented lands in Eden, which became a source of corrupted people’s trading inside and outside the government.

Similarly, Sakhr Al-Wajeeh, the independent representative from the Congress Party, criticized the Committee’s report for not uncovering the names of the 26 individuals to whom the governor of Eden gave lands, as well as those people, that Al-Wajeeh thought, are responsible and powerful in the governorate.

The Committee’s report confirmed that the process of destruction, which controlled by the local authority in the conflict area, is wrong and a rash action which is contrary to the President’s orders, that included handling the establishments according to the law of the lands and the real estates of the country. Additionally, the report considered this process as a negative spot on the side of the governorate, which is supposed to attract the internal and external investment.

The report also indicated that the land problems, in Aden, go back to the political events which happened in the governorate before the unification. That is like, the nationalization of lands and the disposal of lands, which were owned by the government, throughout releasing beneficial contracts under several names.

The parliamentary report criticized the government’s policy in this respect as well as not submitting the presidential decision, 1999, to the court to be put into action.

Furthermore, the report accused Aden’s authorities of not bringing a complete report to the President about the current situation of land disputes in the governorate. For instance, a governor (without mentioning his name) got benefits from agricultural contracts that were released for the 26 persons who got their prescribed lands.

Yemen Observer

Machine-gun fire erupted in Hadda on Saturday, as a result of a dispute over a piece of land reserved by the government for a public park, said security sources who arrived at the scene 15 minutes after the shooting. A Kalashnikov-wielding woman shot at three men, also carrying Kalashnikovs, and the exchange of fire lasted for at least 10 minutes and resulted in at least one injury, said one eyewitness. The woman is from the al-Naiseri family, which quickly erected a dwelling on the land in one day, in order to try to claim squatters’ rights to the land, said neighbors and security sources. .

The shooting started approximately at 3:30 p.m. and the woman was alone as she shot at three men, said an anonymous eyewitness whose house received some bullets in the fire exchange. The witness tried to go the roof to look at what was happening but was asked by the Sheikh of the area to go back inside in order not to be hurt because the exchange of fire was so intense. When police arrived at the scene, they tried to talk to the woman who started the shooting, and tried to get her out of the house to talk to them, but failed to do so. The land dispute now is between al-Naiseri family, which claims to own the land with four or five partners, and a sheikh from Marib, said security forces. The whole story began a month ago when al-Naiseri built a room on the land in question to claim squatter’s rights and fighting erupted.

Another small fire exchange took place in Hadda this week. It began in another area in the main street near Hadda Hotel over another piece of land. It was stopped immediately by the security forces that were patrolling the area, said street vendors who were in a car, selling apricots and grapes in front of the land. There were three Land Cruisers with two security cars on the land, which is located in the main street after the Al-Fakher restaurant, and the shooting lasted for a very short time. The gunfire stopped when the security cars arrived, said the street vendors. They didn’t know if there was anybody injured.

This is the third incident in less than three weeks that has occurred in Hadda. The last one was two weeks ago, when 50 people complained to the minister of the interior over their land. They claimed that their land was taken by the authorities to be a public park and protested. The case is still unsolved. Security officials refused to comment on the incident and refused to provide any statistics regarding the number of incidents that have to do with land ownership.

And another

SANA’A, NewsYemen

NewsYemen was informed that Moamin Nabil Ghanim, 12 years, the son of the businessman Nabil Ghanim was kidnapped Friday when he was outside the house in Hadda, south of Sana’a. (Read on …)

Yemen Observer

Some 200 protestors gathered at the home of Minister of the Interior Dr. Rashad al-Alimi Sunday to demonstrate against the presence of security officers on their land in Haddah. These people fear that their lands are going to be seized by security forces. These people’s lands are located in the al-Ashash section of Haddah. When the protestors arrived at al-Alimi’s house, the minister told them to go to the Central Security to file their complaint, according to the people.

The Yemen Observer tried repeatedly to contact the Ministry of Interior, but officials there said they knew nothing about the issue. The protestors then headed to Central Security, where they complained to the head of Central Security, Abdul-Malek al-Taib, who told them to stay on their lands, said Moahmmed al-Shara’I (one person whose lands are being threatened). Al-Taib could not be reached for comment. “I have told these people that I will meet them in my office and this problem will be solved,” said Mohammed Razq al-Surmi, Deputy Mayor of Sana’a.

The lands in question are going to be used by the central security, and the people will be compensated for them, said al-Surmi. Mohammed Ali al-Hawani, who is one of the people worried about losing his land, claimed that he was physically assaulted by the officers from Haddah police station, but the police at the station denied it. “This land problem started 10 days ago. We were told that the area is needed for the security forces and we said we need official paper so we can claim compensation from them,” said al-Shar’ai.

Mohammed al-Sahr’ai’s mother, Taqya bint Moahmmed Naji, in a traditional Yemeni last appeal, cut part of her hair and burned her sitara (something that she covers herself with) to express her objection to what is happening to her land, in front of the house of the Minister of the Interior. “I am one of the members of the Yemeni army who worked and fought for my country, working loyally for my own country,” said Ali Moahmmed Abdullah al-Ashashi. “I have moved in work from one island to another, to Sa’ada, and I was surprised to find that my land is being taken by force, and it is my land and I have all documents that prove that it is my own property,” said al-Ashashi.

“It is very sad that we don’t feel secure in our own country, security officers are treating us badly, calling us names and all other things,” said al-Ashashi. The protestors claimed that they were fired at on their lands, and that the shooting continued into the night. “Our lands have become easy targets for people that are being protected by security,” said Sheikh Yehya Ismael al-Hwani. The demonstrating people demanded that the security cars move away from their lands. The authorities said that the lands belongs to the Ministry of Endowments.

However, the Ministry of Endowments denies that it received any notice from security saying that it needed these lands. There has been an increase in demonstrations in Yemen in the past three months. Recently, Yemeni people have gathered to demonstrate their support for the victims of the Marib bombings and the people of Spain, their support for freedom of the press, and to demand better medications.

LAHJ

- Tribesmen protest property confiscation

May 2 — Hundreds of tribesmen took to the streets in a peaceful march asking the governorate leadership to restore their lands, which they say were given to influential government officials. In a statement to Al-Sahaw.net, Brig. Badr Al-Ezeibi said that his tribesmen have been asking the authorities to restore their property and agricultural lands since 1990, but until now they have not reached any solution, even though President Ali Abdullah Saleh gave directions to the concerned authorities to return their confiscated property.

SANA’A, April 18 — An armed gang attacked last Sunday a group of military police who were guarding a plot of land in Asr to the west of Sana’a, killing three of them and injuring another.

Media source mentioned that 40 armed men wearing civilian clothes and affiliated with an officer in the Republican Guard in Taiz Branch named Abdullatif Al-Dhanin, a son of Brig. Saleh Al-Dhanin, the Commander of South Military Area, are responsible for the incident.

The source added that Al-Dhanin was accompanied by some armed men when they attacked the soldiers guarding the land, which belongs to an UAE investor of Yemeni origin. They clashed with soldiers causing three to die and another one critically injured.

It also mentioned that the land belongs to a Yemeni, who was working as a secretary for late UAE President Sheikh Zayed bin Sultan, and not to the state as claimed by some media sources. Further, it added that the President Saleh pledged to guard the land and that is the reason for which dozens of military vehicles existed in the land site

Unconfirmed information revealed that the armed men got out some of their injured comrades by force from the hospital to avoid the accountability especially when security apparatuses caught about 20 armed men.

Similar bloody clashes over a plot of land took place last February in the south of the Capital when a group of armed men from the same tribe, Sanhan, tried to take a land belonging to a citizen from Al-Baidha by force. Many citizens were killed and injured in that incident. In fact, such disputes are attributed to the lack of fair judiciary whose main task is to resolve the pending problems soon especially in Sana’a and Aden.

Update:

SANA’A, April 22 — High directives ordered arresting Brig. Saleh Al-Dhanin and his sons together with other 40 armed followers over the clashes that took place last Monday in Asr where Al-Dhanin’s sons attacked a plot of land belonging to an Emirate investor and caused the death of three soldiers affiliated with the military police.

The incident was met with a wide public rage which led to the removal of Brig. Saleh Al-Dhanin from his post as a leader of Khalid bin Al-Waleed military battalion, a post he assumed for over 25 years. The directives imposed the arresting of Al-Dhanin along with his two sons and referring them to a military judiciary.

Murad tribe, whose son was among those killed in the incident, called its sons for a demonstration in Al-Sabeen Square where over than 400 people gathered, asking President Saleh to arrest Al-Dhanin, his sons, and the armed men affiliated with them.

According to a tribal source, President Saleh delegated the leader of the Military Police to address the demonstrators, showing them copies of Saleh’s orders dictating the arrest of the perpetrators and the removal Al-Dhanin from his military post as well as considering those killed as martyrs.

Brig. Al-Dhanin, who is very close to President Saleh, is still hiding in his Sana’a house after Brig. Jubran Al-Hashidi was appointed in his place. Meanwhile, high ranking military leaders are showing sympathy with him since last Tuesday.

Delay in arresting Al-Dhanin and implementing Saleh’s directives made victims kinsmen cast doubts on the non-seriousness of the Ministry of Interior to arrest them Further, they fear reconciliation which is the case with a lot of similar issues that took place in the past particularly when high ranking officials are involved in.

Observers considered the incident to be a test for Saleh’s seriousness to put an end for land lootings by military leaders and those close to decision-making circles, as well as to provide a safe environment for investments.

The incident has just came few months after land corruption file in Aden was closed under presidential directives and after several high ranking military officials were pointed to be involved in such corruption cases.

Yay!

Sana’a, NewsYemen

A Parliamentary committee has described the process of knocking down some houses in Aden by the local authority as “erroneous and headlong act”.

The committee said the decision of demolishing challenges the president’s order to the local authority to tackle the problem of those houses and lands according to the Law of Estates. It said that the demolishing process included houses “which are not involved in the president’s order at all”.

This behavior may have negative impacts on the province as a free economic zone for local and foreign investments, said the committee in a report raised to the Parliament’s leadership.

The committee said the Prosecution did not issue an order before demolishing and that the warning with the houses owners got from the leadership of the province did not include specific dates and that people received such a warning only one day before starting knocking down their houses.

Parliament and the ICC Statute, Did it pass?

SANA’A, NewsYemen

Although the Yemeni Parliament approved last week the Rome Statute of the International Criminal Court (ICC), many MPs continue to say that the way of voting was not legal.

The legal controversy over this issue came to the climax on Saturday when 80 members voted for rechecking the decision of joining ICC against 50 members opposed to have the approval rechecked.

The Parliament leadership suspended the session for more than an hour as the MPs could not reach an agreement after voting by loudspeakers according to the Parliament bylaw.

Some MPs said that re-voting the approval breaches the constitution as the Parliament had officially raised the approval to the president and asked to complete the constitutional procedures in this regard.
(Read on …)

AM:

almotamar.net – Head of appeals prosecution of Aden Judge Qahir Mustafa affirmed Tuesday inaccuracy of the disquieting news published by Al-Sahwa newspaper in its last issue on allegation of the citizen Arwa al-Hamadani of the loss of her right as inheritor of a plot of land in the area of Kud Baihan in the governorate of Aden.

He made it clear by mentioning that he as a judge in the judiciary authority is obliged in applying the law in dependence on the legitimate and legal documents that are considered before the concerned body and to deal with in accordance with that. He said the rival of Arwa al-Hamadani presented to the Sheikh Uthman prosecution documents proving selling of the said piece of land to him by his owner and the concerned prosecution asked Arwa to present her documents. Instead of that she sent letters to a number of officials about the case.

Regarding the false accusations and offence published by Al-Sahwa newspaper the Judge said he is in the process of suing the newspaper and to whom those allegations were attributed and they have to confirm them before the court or to bear the legal responsibility.

Well they released the arrested protesters. That’s some good news.

from the Yemen Observer: “The detainees who were arrested by the security of Aden were released on Sunday after protests were held in some governorates by the families of the dead buried in the cemetery of Tariq camp in Aden. They were arrested after a peaceful demonstration in protest against the security’s actions of digging in the cemetery,” said Khaled al-Anesi, the executive manager of HOOD organization and one of the lawyers who was working on this case.

The cemetery of Tariq Camp contains the remains of socialist party members executed at the camp in 1986. Aden security forces began digging up the cemetery last week, to convert the space into a garden. The families of the deceased formed a protest in order to stop the activities of the security forces. They were subsequently arrested. Protesters across the country demonstrated on Saturday demanding the release of those arrested. “The cemetery for the martyrs of the events of January 13, 1986 is known to everyone, but it was being dug up by the security under the pretext that it would be transformed into a garden, or would be sold to investors,” al-Anesi said.

The protesters expressed strong condemnation of the previous arrests in what they described as an arbitrary procedure and a flagrant violation of the rights of protesters that are guaranteed by the constitution and local laws, according to a statement issued by the protest committee. “The families of dead objected to this humiliating action, so they protest in a peaceful way at the cemetery. But security tried to evacuate the cemetery by force, using weapons and arresting several people,” al-Anesi said. “A Parliamentary committee went to inspect the situation and came up with some solutions, such as determining the borders of the cemetery to be part of a memorial and a visiting place, and put the garden next to it.”

“We were surprised after the agreement; the security arrested persons in dramatic way by drawing their weapons and preventing them from visiting the grounds. Security has no authority to do this work and they should be referred to the prosecution,” al-Anesi said. The statement denied that the protesters were causing riots or throwing rocks at the Works office, as alleged by local officials. The Governor of Aden, Ahmad al-Quhlani, told Yemen Observer that there is no cemetery at Tariq, but that this place was a camp the past.

President Ali Abdullah Saleh directed there to be a garden built at this camp, he said. “Some men appeared and said that there were bodies of people who were in the socialist party uprising and were executed at this camp, so we called the socialist party chief and decided to put a fence around the cemetery and the case is now over,” he said.

Stealing a cemetery is so pathetic.

How come these poor Yemenis dont get put up in a hotel at government expense like the Jews who were threatened? Does that mean Saleh is a Zionist?

AS Hundreds of Roash and Alsdifa citizens , Ibb Province , appealed the president, Ali Abdullah Saleh , to immediately intervene to end forced migrations and ongoing infringements they experience by Sheikh ,Mohammad Ahmed Almansour and his soldiers. Sheikh banished 400 individuals from their homes after they refused paying illegal taxes for him.

They said in a press conference organized by Hood Organization for Defending Freedoms and Rights that they are demanding the government and the president to protect them form the tyrant Sheikh and his soldiers.

“If the president can not protect us,then, he has to open the borders for us in order to demand political asylum to any country which respects others ”

In the conference, elderly men, women and children of the refugees talked about some horrible practices of the aforementioned sheikh; gouges, kidnaps, special prisons and illegal fines, denying at the same time their connection to the opposition or political activities as the Sheikh claimed, showing at the same time their belonging to the ruling party.

They showed for media and human rights bodies pictures of their suffers, gouges and abuses sheikh has been practicing against them.

As everything gets more and more concentrated in a few hands:

AS:

Five individuals were seriously wounded Sunday in Hais , Hodaida Province due to erupting armed clashes. Local sources said to Alsahwa that clashes were erupted among citizens and influential figures who tried to grasp lands on the main roads linking between Sana’a and Taiz .

The sources explained that some influential people urged some armed men to control the lands.

Meanwhile, local sources said that they arrested 10 persons who involved in the clashes and that they were released after presenting pledges that they would not return to the lands.

How low can you go?

YT: Many areas in Aden on Saturday were the scene of protests—sometimes approaching riots—in the wake of an attempt by a government official to seize a cemetery in order to break-up the land and sell it as various private plots.

Sources in Aden, who wish to remain unidentified, said that residents in the districts of Al-Shaab, Al-Hassawa, Abu-Harba, and other nearby areas took to the streets in a demonstration that blocked the road to the area and burned old tires in the wake of Fahd Abdulaziz’s—director of the Office of Endowments in Aden—attempt to forcefully enter a cemetery in order to sell off the land.

Residents say that the seizure was an attempt by a ‘land Mafia’ to switch the status of the land to private ownership. Knowing what was brewing, citizens tried to prevent seizure of the land by building a wall around the cemetery’s perimeter some months ago. Yet, their work was partially destroyed by unknown hoodlums who pulled down parts of the wall. Currently, the prosecutor’s office is still conducting investigations into that act of vandalism.

One of the area’s residents, A’rif Al-Halimi told the Shoura.net that the commander of the security sector of Buraiqa and the chief of police of the Al-Shaab district told local residents who were protesting that orders existed preventing the exploitation of the cemetery’s land.

Al-Halimi, a lawyer, made it clear that the Office of Endowments in Aden is in the vanguard of those attempting to confiscate the cemetery’s land. He indicated that the office has met with resentment from local residents who unanimously refuse the sale of the cemetery’s land.