Prominent Yemeni reformist and editor Abdulkarim Al-Khaiwani was arrested on Wednesday by Yemeni police. It is the latest in a campaign targeting him that has spanned years and included politicized arrest, "cloning" his newspaper, blocking his website, death threats and threats to kidnap his children. Once he was prohibited from leaving Yemen. He was arrested at the airport en route to a Red Cross conference.

Mr. Al-Khaiwani, pictured below left in 2006 with presidential candidate Faisel bin Shamlan, is a vocal critic of Yemen's authoritarian regime, accusing it of corruption and nepotism. His criticism of Yemeni dictator, Ali Abdullah Saleh, landed al-Khaiwani a one year jail term in 2004. He was convicted of insulting the president and pardoned after seven months in detention.

In latest developments of the case, AFP reports the democracy activist was badly beaten during arrest and is being held without charge.

IHT: SAN'A, Yemen: Journalists rallied in protest after police on Wednesday arrested a Yemeni opposition editor accused of backing the country's Shiite rebels, a police official and the attacked journalist's family said.

Dozens of journalists gathered in front of the general prosecutor office in the Yemeni capital, San'a, demanding the release of the Al-Shura weekly's editor Abdel Abdul Karim al-Khawinay, taken by police to jail earlier in the day.

The family of al-Khawinay said that security personnel stormed their home early Wednesday, beat up al-Khawinay with fists and gun-butts, then dragged him bleeding from the ear and nose to the police station.

"His face, pajamas were all stained with blood," said al-Khawinay's wife, who gave her name as Um Mohammed....

In December, Mr. al-Khaiwani wrote to the UN about the conditions of journalists in Yemen, the Yemen Times reported. “The State hunts us, abuses our rights and restrict our freedom of expressions,” he said in a letter co-authored with other leading journalists. “We were subjected to abduction, forcible disappearance and illegal and unconstitutional arrests. We are deprived of our livelihood sources because we criticize corruption and the military regime that has been grasping power for 28 years." The UN never wrote back.

In related news, a human rights worker, Moammar Ahmed Saleh Al-Abdali, was "arrested" by the Political Security Organization (PSO) on May 25th and has been held incommunicado since. The Civil Rights Organization, HOOD reports Mr. Al_Abdali's family is concerned for his welfare. Torture is common in Yemeni jail

In Taiz, News Yemen reports, "A teacher and headmaster were put in the prison of the Political Security in Taiz province over asking students to write compositions about corruption and price hikes on the Arabic language exam paper."

Yemeni journalists plan to hold another sit-in today in solidarity with Mr. Al-Khaiwani.

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