Man loses eye in attempt to save his home from demolition [Archives:2007/1109/Front Page]

By: Ridwan Al-Saqqaf
ADEN, Dec. 5 – For the second consecutive day, residents of Aden's Assalam neighborhood are holding sit-ins to prevent the looming demolition of their slums.

It took four hours of protest and struggle to save their shabby homes from being demolished by Khor Maksar district's general works department. When department personnel arrived at the scene with bulldozers on Monday, whole families rushed to block the main street into their area.

As a result, security forces backed the general works personnel by firing upon the residents and using tear gas bombs to disperse the angry protestors.

One young man lost his eye after a tear gas bomb exploded in his face, while several others, including five children, were rushed to the hospital for smoke inhalation and suffocation.

Female police officers were summoned to the scene to forcefully evacuate those women and children refusing to leave their homes. In protest, the resisting women and their children fled into the smoke-filled streets, which led to their injuries.

After four hours, police finally withdrew from the area and the families returned to their homes.

The residents now are holding permanent sit-ins out of fear that the authorities again will attempt to demolish their homes, which have existed in that area for several years.
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