Anger protests expand in Aden, Mukalla, Lahj against Saudi-backed government
PROVINCES, June 09 (YPA) – With the onset of evening hours in the Aden governorate, many citizens are forced to sleep on sidewalks and open streets due to the scorching summer heat and continuous power outages.
Temperatures in the city are soaring to record levels, transforming the homes of many families into stifling spaces due to prolonged blackouts. Meanwhile, scenes of citizens lying on the streets in the districts of Mualla, Sira, and Crater have become familiar, embodying the worsening daily suffering that residents have endured for weeks.
Against this backdrop, protesters blocked the road leading to the Maa’shiq Palace in the city of Aden on Monday evening to protest continuous power outages and deteriorating services. Dozens of citizens staged a protest rally that included road blockades and the burning of discarded tires, expressing their anger over blackouts rising to unprecedented levels in tandem with the severe heatwave hitting the city.
The protesters chanted slogans demanding that the Saudi-backed government and relevant authorities intervene urgently to find radical solutions to the electricity crisis and end the suffering of the population, amid what they described as a deterioration of basic services and worsening living conditions.
Protesters say their lives have become akin to hell as a result of the continuous power cuts amid the unprecedented heatwaves, expressing astonishment at the government’s continued silence and its inability to address the priorities of citizens—foremost among them the electricity service.
Economic experts view the suffering of Aden’s residents as having reached unprecedented levels, given the widespread paralysis hitting the city, which has reflected on various aspects of daily life. They emphasized that the continuation of the electricity crisis exacerbates humanitarian and living burdens, and increases popular tension in the city and neighboring governorates.
The state of popular anger extended to other cities in the south and east of the country. Aden and Mukalla witnessed escalating protests on Monday evening for the second consecutive day, denouncing the deterioration of the electricity service and living conditions.
In the Hadramout governorate, dozens of citizens took to the streets in the city of Mukalla, where protesters blocked a number of main roads and set fire to discarded tires, disrupting traffic flow.
Meanwhile, in the Lahj governorate, citizens continued their peaceful protest movements to demand improvements in the electricity service and to address the deteriorating living standards. They affirmed that their demands fall within the legitimate service rights of citizens. One event witnessed limited tension between a number of protesters and security elements following the closure of a main road, before local mediation succeeded in containing the situation without recording any incidents or injuries.
Participants in the protests renewed their commitment to continuing peaceful escalation until the relevant authorities respond to the residents’ demands—foremost of which are improving the electricity service and addressing the worsening service and living crises—calling on the authorities to deal responsibly with the popular demands, which they described as basic citizen rights.
In an attempt to contain the state of public tension, the Aden Security Directorate, which is affiliated with the Saudi-backed government, issued a statement today, Tuesday, commenting on the protests linked to the deterioration of the electricity service and long power cuts, affirming its understanding of the frustration and suffering experienced by citizens under the current circumstances.
The Security Directorate expressed its regret over the injury of one protester during the events that took place on the roads leading to the Al-Safinah roundabout, confirming that the competent authorities are following up on the circumstances of the incident in accordance with legal procedures, and stressing that protecting lives and maintaining public security represent a primary priority.
In the meantime, the Ministry of Electricity and Energy in the Saudi-backed government announced on Tuesday the start of implementing an urgent plan to raise the efficiency of electricity generation in Aden and Hadramout, which includes providing additional quantities of fuel with Saudi support.
However, the crisis experienced by the governorates under the control of the Saudi-backed government has extended for months and has worsened significantly with the onset of the summer season and rising temperatures, amid a shortage of the fuel required to operate generation plants and a decline in the authorities’ capacity to find sustainable solutions. This has pushed popular protests to expand and raise the ceiling of demands related to reforming the services sector and improving living conditions.
YPA