In Brief [Archives:2008/1133/Local News]

AL-BEIDHA

– Counterfeit currency caught

Two young men accused of counterfeiting YR 500 bills were caught red-handed in Rada'a area with more than 5,000 bills of the fake currency. The two are a part of a larger group specialized in counterfeiting.

An investigation currently is ongoing after the two men confessed to the crime.

– AL-DHALE'

Mother of two-headed baby saved

A Caesarean section saved the life of a mother of a baby girl born with two heads. Not having followed up with her doctor regularly during her pregnancy, she was rushed to the hospital when she started having strong contractions, only to discover that she was carrying a baby girl with two heads.

The baby lived for a few minutes before it died. However, the mother is in good health. The operating doctor said such deformities are caused by misuse of medicines, chewing qat and exposure to tobacco during pregnancy.

HODEIDAH

– Attempted smuggling of five children foiled

Five children heading to Saudi Arabia on a long-distance bus were caught and returned to their family families. All aged 14 or 15, they were lured by a smuggler promising them high-paying jobs if they left their Sana'a homes and went with him.

The families reported their missing children, who also stole $200, and police set up search units at all border crossings. The name and description of the smuggler, who was awaiting them on the other side of the border, were given to police for further investigation.

LAHJ

– Women trained in volunteer work

Women Journalists Without Chains has commenced its first four-day awareness training for women in Lahj. A Canadian program for self-development is funding the course as part of a second program for the mass mobilization of women leaders.

The training focuses on advocacy and awareness techniques and the role of media in social education. Twenty-five female trainees from Lahj and Al-Dhale' governorates are participating in the training, which also includes archiving, communication and secretarial skills.

MARIB

– Ancient building discovered in Al-Maqqah Temple

A delegation from the German Institute for Antiquities, which is working in the historical city of Sirwah, on Tuesday announced the discovery of an ancient building in the compound of Marib's Al-Maqqah Temple.

Current digging will reveal the structure's history, which will speak to the importance of Sheban history. Besides digging and exploration, the institute is doing maintenance on several ancient sites to be utilized in the area's tourism. Digging began at the temple in 1992, preceded by documenting works to discover manuscripts in the temple.

SA'ADA

– School football team wins national cup

After weeks of competing in school football matches for the championship cup, the team from Sa'ada district won first place.

The school districts football tournament concluded its competition with a final exciting match wherein the winner was determined by penalty shots.

ZABID

– Association to preserve ancient scripts formed

Families in the historical city of Zabid are known to possess ancient scientific and religious scripts handed down through the generations.

The association to preserve ancient scripts has elected its board members composed of 13 individuals responsible for creating training and awareness programs for these families in order to preserve the manuscripts. Thus far, 1,500 such documents are registered.

Additionally, the city has created a web site in both Arabic and English about its historical documents and scripts, which it hopes to launch soon.
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