The temporary capital Aden and Lahj Governorate witnessed angry protests on Monday, during which dozens of citizens closed several currency exchange shops in protest against the fraud they suffered due to the so-called “illusory improvement” of the local currency over the past two days.

Local sources told Al-Masdar Online that the protesters demanded the return of their money after suffering significant losses due to exchange rate differences, while military forces quickly intervened to disperse the protesters before the exchange shops resumed their normal activity.

These developments come amid sharp fluctuations in exchange rates in recent days, coinciding with banks and exchange companies stopping the sale of currencies for personal purposes according to mechanisms announced by the Central Bank of Yemen.

The Central Bank’s board of directors approved in its fifth regular meeting on Sunday evening to fix the Yemeni rial exchange rate at (425 rials for buying and 428 rials for selling) against the Saudi riyal.

The bank confirmed that all amounts purchased in foreign currencies during the past two days belong to the Central Bank and the National Committee for Organizing and Financing Imports, warning at the same time against any attempts to manipulate or tamper with the market.