Saleh forces kill 13 protesters in Yemen

Forces loyal to Yemen’s Ali Abdullah Saleh have killed at least 13 anti-government protesters in the capital of Sana’a as well as in the city of Taizz.

Regime thugs used live bullets against and threw stones at anti-regime protesters in Taizz on Saturday, killing at least 12 people, half of whom were women, AFP reported.

Meanwhile, overnight clashes between regime forces and opposition fighters broke out in the capital’s Change Square, where, according to medical sources, one dissident soldier was killed.

In addition, as many as eight protesters are also believed to have been injured.

The fighting began as regime forces fired at the demonstrators, attempting to expand their protest camp at Change Square.

The development comes as the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights Navi Pillay on Tuesday called on the Yemeni regime to stop exercising violence against its people and release all the prisoners detained during the country’s peaceful protests.

“Hundreds have been killed and thousands have suffered injuries, including loss of limbs,” Pillay said.

Saleh remains in Saudi Arabia, where he fled to for medical treatment following a rocket attack on the Yemeni presidential palace in Sana’a on June 3.