By Shukri Hussein and Mubarak Mohamed
ADEN, Yemen (AA) – Protesters on Thursday blocked roads in the southern city of Aden — Yemen's interim capital — while three cities in Hadhramaut province were also rocked by demonstrations.
For the fifth consecutive day, youths in Aden and Hadhramaut staged demonstrations against rapidly rising costs of living following a recent plunge in the value of Yemen’s currency vis-à-vis the U.S. dollar.
Witnesses said angry protesters had blocked all roads linking the province’s eight directorates, bringing traffic to a virtual standstill.
According to local residents, protesters also blocked roads leading to Aden’s Maasheeq presidential palace, prompting the deployment of UAE-backed “Security Belt” forces, which support Yemen’s pro-Saudi government.
In Hadhramaut, meanwhile, three of the province’s largest cities — Seiyun, Al-Qatn and regional capital Mukalla — all saw continued protests on Thursday.
In an effort to contain mounting popular discontent, the government earlier this week announced a 30-percent increase in public-sector salaries.
The move failed to dampen the protests, however, which erupted after a sharp drop in the value of Yemen’s rial from about 515 to the dollar last month to a current 630.
At the beginning of 2015, the rial had traded at roughly 215 to the greenback.
Yemen has remained wracked by violence since 2014, when Houthi rebels overran much of the country, forcing Yemen’s pro-Saudi government to take up temporary residence in Aden.
