Yemen: Taiz is Bleeding while the UN Envoy is in Sanaa

This post is part of our special coverage Yemen Protests 2011.

Yesterday's arrival of the UN envoy Bin Omar to Sanaa didn't seem to deter president Ali Abdullah Saleh or his forces from defiantly committing more violence and atrocities in Taiz. The continuous and random shelling by Saleh forces on Taiz's residential areas has caused many deaths and injuries to civilians and destruction of many homes.

An 11-year-old boy was killed in Taiz yesterday and 10 were injured. The city was under overnight shelling and another victim was brutally killed as a shell landed in the living area of his home at dawn.

This [WARNING] graphic video, uploaded by FreeDomTaiz on YouTube, shows his family's grief and bitterness towards President's Saleh continued crimes.

Ironically today's Friday in Yemen was called “Friday of no Amnesty to the Murderers.” Hundreds of thousands went to the streets across Yemen to reject the GCC initiative granting President Saleh any immunity. (Video posted by FreeDomTaiz)

A shell landed near a group of women during Friday prayers in Taiz's Freedom Square as this posted video shows (also by: FreeDomTaiz)

http://www.youtube.com/watch?feature=player_embedded&v=ByjgzNkubf0

Three women were killed and five were injured as a result. A girl shown in this video [WARNING: GRAPHIC] expresses her mixed emotions, happiness for her mother's martyrdom and grief for her loss and prays to God to condemn President Saleh.

Even Al Rawdha Hospital where all the injured and dead bodies were taken to was shelled as these two video show. This video shows damage to the outside of the hospital (video posted by: FreeDomTaiz)

And this video documents damage inside it. (Video posted by: ebnalbalad522)

Saleh's forces shelling Taiz residential areas has killed men, women and children. [WARNING: Graphic video] This extremely graphic video shows a little girl crying: I don't want to die. (Video posted by: FreeDomTaiz)

Clearly nobody was spared from the ongoing violence on the city, not even the innocent children. This [WARNING: Graphic video] graphic video shows 8-year-old Amal Abdel Wahid, who was killed during the attacks on Taiz. (Video posted by: almobdieen)

In an earlier count, 13 people were reported killed, among them three children, three women and seven men. About 40 people were injured.

Yemeni journalist KhaledHammadi reports the updated figures:

Death toll in #Taiz #Yemen rises to 15 & dozens injured as #Saleh forces shelled many residential areas & protest square at Friday prayers

Meanwhile, Yemenis in Yemen and abroad continue to reject the GCC initiative and the immunity it grants President Saleh, whom many consider a cold-blooded murderer who should be referred to the International Court of Justice, where he should stand trial for the crimes he has committed towards his people.

@almuraisy tweets:

How dare any f* person or initiative talks about immunity to #Saleh after this GRAPHIC CRIME (vid +18) bit.ly/srXp3t ? #Yemen

@BaraaShiban adds:

If #Saleh is crazy for shelling people, the International Community are more crazy for willing to give him immunity #Yemen #SupportYemen

And @TawfiqYemen appeals to the international community to pay attention to the atrocities being committed in Yemen:

@hrw @amnesty Where R U? #Taiz ppl slaughtered everywhere, even in Friday prayer sq, and still @UN negotiates immunity to #Saleh! #Yemen

Today was a heart breaking and bloody day in Taiz but it was also a powerful and clear message to the world that Saleh is a criminal who should not be spared from trial because the Yemeni people will never allow that to happen.

This post is part of our special coverage Yemen Protests 2011.

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