Embattled U.S.-backed Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has enacted sweeping emergency powers amidst a growing uprising against his 30-year rule. On Wednesday, Yemen’s parliament approved the implementation of emergency laws suspending the constitution, barring protests, allowing far-reaching media censorship, and handing more authority to state forces. Just over half of Yemen’s 301 parliament members were present for the vote. Thousands of people remain in the streets of Yemen in defiance of the new laws.