Aden protesters block roads, burn tires over prolonged power outages
ADEN, July 05 (YPA) – Angry public protests broke out on Friday in Yemen’s southern port city of Aden, which is under the Saudi-led coalition control, denouncing the ongoing power outages and worsening living conditions in the city and other southern provinces.
Protesters in Aden blocked major streets in Al-Mansoura and Sheikh Othman with stones and burning tires, protesting crippling power outages that have left residents with only two hours of electricity per day amid a scorching summer heatwave.
The blackouts, lasting up to 14 consecutive hours, have sparked widespread anger as temperatures soar.
They chanted slogans demanding the departure of the pro- coalition government and the coalition, accusing them of making false promises without taking real action to improve electricity services or halt the continuous collapse of the Yemeni riyal against foreign currencies in Aden and other southern areas that has severely impacted their living conditions.
Protesters accused the coalition countries—primarily Saudi Arabia and the UAE—of waging a war of starvation and service deprivation against the people of Aden and the southern provinces to implement their own agendas.
Activists in Aden expressed astonishment that Saudi Arabia and the UAE pay billions of riyals monthly in salaries to their affiliated factions, while failing to deliver even an emergency fuel shipment to power plant stations.
They called on the free people of Aden and the southern provinces to take part in massive public protests next Monday in front of the Ma’ashiq Palace, which serves as the residence of Presidential Leadership Council head Rashad Al-Alimi and several pro-coalition government officials.
Activists called for sit-ins outside the presidential palace gates until their demands are met.
They urged pro-coalition authorities to improve electricity services, halt the currency’s rapid depreciation—which has severely weakened purchasing power—and adjust public sector salaries to reflect the dire economic conditions.
@E.Y.M