46 die as elite snipers attack Yemen protest

A MASSIVE demonstration against Yemen’s government turned into a killing field yesterday as snipers methodically fired down on protesters from rooftops and police made a wall of fire with tires and petrol, blocking a key escape route.

At least 46 people died, including some children, in an attack that marked a new level of brutality in President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s crackdown on dissent. Medical officials and witnesses said hundreds were wounded.

The violence suggested Saleh was growing more fearful that the street protests over the past month, set off by unrest across the Arab world, could unravel his 32-year grip on power in this volatile, impoverished and gun-saturated nation. The United States, which has long relied on Saleh for help fighting terrorism, condemned the violence.