Yemen releases 17 activists

Yemen's public prosecutor on Wednesday ordered to release 17 youths who were arrested during the 2011 mass protests against former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, the official Saba news agency reported. Attorney General Ali Ahmed Al-Awash also directed the public prosecution to refer other 12 imprisoned activists to the court who were accused of bombing a mosque in the presidential palace in June 2011, Saba said. Another 45 imprisoned activists were ordered to be put on trial for other crimes, Saba added. Earlier this week, Yemeni Human Rights Minister Huriya Mashhoor warned in an official statement that she "will suspend her work in the cabinet until the youths who participated in the revolution are released." On May 24, human rights groups said more than 20 detainees in the central jail in the capital Sanaa went on hunger strike to demand their release. Saleh stepped down in February 2012 after a year of deadly protests that resulted in over 2,000 deaths. The 33-year ruler resigned under a power transfer deal brokered by Gulf states and backed by the United Nations, in return for complete immunity from prosecution for himself and his aides. Saleh's deputy Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi was elected as the Yemeni president for a two-year transition period in 2012. In March, Hadi launched a national reconciliation dialogue which is scheduled for six months, aiming to draft a new constitution and prepare for holding the presidential election in February 2014.