Protesters demand release of Yemeni activist

Yemeni students march through the streets of the Yemeni capital Sanaa on January 16, urging Arabs to rise up against their leaders in the wake of Tunisia's President Zine El Abidine Ben Ali's ouster. In fresh protests about 200 journalists marched in Sanaa to demand the release of press freedom activist Tawakel Karman and other detainees, while witnesses said student protesters clashed with police.

AFP - About 200 journalists marched in Sanaa on Sunday to demand the release of press freedom activist Tawakel Karman and other detainees, while witnesses said student protesters clashed with police in the capital.

An AFP correspondent said the journalists were marching from their union office to the prosecutor's office to demand the release of those detained.

Karman, known to have been involved in pro-Tunisia revolt protests which have also seen calls for political change in Yemen, heads the rights group Women Journalists Without Chains.

Yemeni police arrested Karman in a main street in Sanaa as she headed home with her husband overnight, according to rights activists who declined to be named.

The reason for her arrest was unclear, but she is being held in Sanaa's main prison, according to her family.

A security official said the arrest stemmed from a warrant issued by prosecutors, without specifying why the warrant was issued.

"The detention of Karman is a criminal offence and an immoral act," Mohammed Qobati, a spokesman for Yemen's parliamentary opposition, said in a statement on Sunday.

Karman, a member of the central committee of the opposition Islamist Al-Islah (Reform) party, has been involved in Sanaa demonstrations in support of a popular revolt in Tunisia which led to the ousting of president Zine El Abidine Ben Ali.

The Sanaa protests were also marked by calls for political change in Yemen while there were more calls for change by dozens of students protesting outside Sanaa University on Sunday.

Witnesses said clashes broke out as security forces tried to disperse the students.

A cameraman for Al-Arabiya satellite channel who was filming the clashes was briefly detained, his station said.

And a cameraman for Al-Jazeera was beaten by police, the Qatar-based station said.

On Saturday, hundreds of Sanaa University students held rival demonstrations on campus, with some calling for Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down and others for him to remain in office.

Saleh, who has been in power for decades, was re-elected in September 2006 for a seven-year mandate.

A draft amendment of the constitution, under discussion in parliament despite opposition protests, could further stretch his tenure by allowing a life-long mandate.