Yemeni Gangs Injure Women Protesters

Pro-government gangs assaulted dozens of women in Yemen yesterday marching to honor the country's new Nobel Peace Prize winner, CNN reports. Thousands of women turned out in three Yemeni provinces to celebrate Tawakkol Karman, the first Arab woman to win the prize. But the march in Taiz was disrupted when thugs attacked with batons and rocks, injuring at least 38 women.

One prominent Yemeni activist lays blame on the government: "This is a way for Saleh's government to send a message that women shouldn't demonstrate," he says. Demonstrators in the province of Shabwa demanded UN sanctions against President Ali Abdullah Saleh's ruling family; in Taiz, protesters chanted "Saleh Saleh will stand trial" while marching for more than 3 hours. Yemeni officials did not answer requests for comment. (More Tawakkol Karman stories.)