Yemen Shuts ex-President's Daily, Channel

Yemen shut down a newspaper and television channel owned by former president Ali Abdullah Saleh Wednesday without giving any reason, a member of Saleh's said.

Both media outlets are often singled out for their coverage, seen as biased against the government formed after Saleh bowed to street pressures and resigned in 2012.

"Yemen Today television channel and newspaper were shut down today" after the government approved a "decision by president Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi," Sultan al-Barakani, the head of the General People's Congress parliamentary bloc, told Agence France Presse.

"Forces belonging to the presidential guard shuttered the headquarters of the television and newspaper and seized their equipment," he said, adding that no explanation was given for what he called a "dangerous precedent."

The closure came as the interior ministry urged people to "avoid responding to suspicious calls inciting violence," as thousands took to the streets of Sanaa to protest power cuts and water and fuel shortages.

Although weakened, Saleh still heads the influential GPC and retains the loyalty of some elements in the military. Critics accuse him of impeding the country's political transition.

In February 2013, the United Nations reiterated a threat of sanctions against anyone who interferes in the delicate transition process, naming Saleh explicitly.