Stig Östlund

torsdag, februari 03, 2011

In Yemen, thousands demand Saleh quit now


SANAA: Tens of thousands of demonstrators, some chanting "down, down with the regime," marched Thursday in several towns and cities in Yemen against President Ali Abdullah Saleh.


Police opened fire and tear gas to break up one of the marches, witnesses said, and security officials confirmed a demonstrator was critically wounded by police fire. Two others were also hurt in the eastern town of Mukalla, but further details were not immediately available.

In the capital of Sanaa, scuffles and stone-throwing briefly erupted between thousands of anti-government demonstrators and supporters of Saleh. However, police stepped in and there were no reports of injuries.


There was a heavy security presence around the Interior Ministry and the Central Bank. Military helicopters hovered in some areas.

Protests erupted in several towns after Saleh sought to defuse demands for his ouster by pledging Wednesday not to seek another term in 2013 and not to let his son inherit power.

Anti-government protesters said they don't trust Saleh and demanded that he quit immediately. "Thirty years of promises and thirty years of lies," read a banner raised by marchers in Sanaa.

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