Yemeni President fires cabinet

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh yesterday dismissed his Cabinet, but has asked the officials to stay on until a new Cabinet is appointed.

21 March 2011, 12:00am

1 min read

The President’s decision followed the resignation of two top Yemeni officials as a protest to the government’s crackdown on protesters that left 53 people dead last week.

"The Embassy of the Republic of Yemen hereby would like to express its condolences and heartfelt sorrow for the loss of innocent lives," read a statement released yesterday by the Yemeni embassy in Washington, D.C. "The perpetrators of this heinous act will be prosecuted to the full extent of the law."

According to the statement, Yemen's chief prosecutor has launched an investigation into the shootings at Sanaa on Friday and is questioning 17 suspects accused of orchestrating the massacre.

The two officials were Human Rights Minister Huda al-Bann’s and Yemen’s ambassador to the United Nations Abdullah Al-Said.