ADEN – Yemeni authorities have prevented a local newspaper linked to southern separatists from being printed at a government-owned press in Aden, editors said on Sunday, in a move that led to a protest in the port city.

The Aden al-Ghad newspaper said officials at the 14 October Printing and Publishing house refused to print its Sunday edition on Saturday night, saying they were implementing instructions from senior officials in the capital.

A government source in Sanaa said the move was part of an attempt by the government to restore order to the publishing sector and printing could resume once the newspaper’s owners had obtained a license to publish from the Information Ministry.

Aden al-Ghad reflects the views of Southern Herak, the main group demanding the restoration of the state that merged with North Yemen in 1990.

The newspaper, which began publishing after southern activists set up Herak in 2007 to push for independence, said it was licensed by the Information Ministry and had been abiding by journalistic principles since its inception.

It said the move was part of a government campaign against the newspaper, and said its editor had been assaulted hours earlier at a security checkpoint in Aden.

The newspaper said officials had cited its reporting on what it called “peaceful activities by the sons of the south” as a reason to prevent it being printed.