تقرير جديد للصحفيه الامريكيه Heather Murdock.wmv

The pictures in the slideshow below are from a part of Yemen that locals call "al-Janoob al-Harr" -- The Free South. Technically, it is within the borders of the arid Arabian country, but the government does not come here. It is ruled by a network of sheiks and the Southern Movement, an organization that wants to sever the 16-year-old unity between northern and southern Yemen.

Reporters rarely travel to separatist controlled areas in Yemen, and I was surprised by what we found. I expected to see dark hideouts in an impoverished countryside. Instead . . .spirited would-be rebels drive land cruisers and sing songs like this one. "My eyes don't drip tears," she sings, "because there is a candle of hope."

Only minutes after passing the last military checkpoint at the steamy government controlled port city of Aden, we see flags of the former South Yemen. These flags are illegal in Yemen's cities. But in the southern countryside, they are painted on mountainsides, buildings and even on water tanks.

People line the streets to show support for Southern Movement leaders. When I ask why they came out, many become angry. Some say they are former soldiers who have not been paid in more than a decade. Others say they were attacked at peaceful protests.

These men, like many southerners, say the people in the region are heavily armed and want rebellion

Government officials say Southern Movement leaders are criminals who are attempting to destabilize the country for personal gain. The Movement, they say, is not organized enough or popular enough to stage a rebellion.

Here in Yaffa, leaders say they are not planning a war. They say they have no standing military and that money is tight. But they say they are not against a war either. Many say they support peaceful protest, but that a fight might come - with or without their support.

They blame the north for southern poverty and unemployment. Government officials are quick to point out that all of Yemen is desperately poor, not only the south.

But in these breezy, cool hills, poverty does not appear to be the main issue. As this 14-year-old poet says, "First we ask for freedom."

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