MORE THAN 2,000 people have been killed in Yemen in the political turmoil of the past year, the country’s government said today.
The figure is much higher than human rights groups had estimated.
The government released its first casualty figures on a day when crowds of protesters were marking one year since a particularly bloody day when dozens were killed.
Yemen’s Ministry of Human Rights said the figure of at least 2,000 includes both unarmed protesters and military defectors, as well as more than 120 children. It said 22,000 people were wounded over the past year.
Amnesty International estimated earlier this year that 200 protesters had been killed in the uprising.
The government of Ali Abdullah Saleh, who stepped down as president last month after more than three decades in power, never released casualty figures.
For nearly a year, armed men in plain clothes loyal to Saleh attacked anti-government protesters, while security forces did little to stop them.
Yemenis protested across the country today to mark the killing of more than 50 protesters last year by snipers loyal to the former regime.
Hundreds of thousands of protesters took to the streets in at least 18 provinces to demand that Saleh be tried for the deaths of protesters killed a year ago on “Friday of Dignity,” when snipers fired from rooftops at protesters in Sanaa’s Change Square.
As part of an internationally backed deal, Saleh was granted immunity from prosecution in exchange for handing over powers to his vice president.
The internal turmoil has led to a collapse of security in many parts of Yemen.
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