Thirty separatists escape from Yemen prison after bomb blast

SANA’A - About 30 separatists from southern Yemen escaped from a police station in the region Thursday after a bomb blast rocked the building, a local source said.

The source, who asked not to be named, said three prisoners were injured in the bombing, which was believed to have been carried out by members of the separatist Southern Movement to allow the escape of the detainees in al-Dhalea city.

Witnesses said police exchanged fire with armed separatists outside the detention centre after the explosion, but no reports about casualties.

Violent protests have rocked several cities in southern Yemen in the last few months, leaving dozens of dead and wounded among both the protesters and security forces members.

The protests were organised by southern secessionist groups claiming that the central government exercises discriminatory policies against southerners.

North and South Yemen were united in 1990. In 1994, southern leaders announced the secession of the south and battled northern forces led by President Saleh for 10 weeks in a civil war that ended in their defeat.

The violence highlights the increasing discontent by the southerners and tensions between southern and northern Yemen 16 years after the civil war.