Hundreds of thousands Yemeni’s hold anti- and pro-Saleh rallies

Hundreds of thousands flooded Yemen’s streets Friday seeking victory against “tyrants,” a day after President Ali Abdullah Saleh said a Gulf Cooperation Council proposal for power transfer should be treated positively.

“God most merciful, grant us victory in (the Muslim holy fasting month of) Ramadan,” protesters chanted in Sittine Road, in a western district of the capital Sana’a.

“Revolt, revolt to all people against the tyrants,” they chanted on what they have named the Friday of “achieving victory.”

“Revolt, revolt to all people against the tyrants,” they chanted on what they have named the Friday of “achieving victory.”

The protesters also called for “building a new Yemen.”
Similar protesters took place in the second-largest city Taez, as well as in Ibb, Hudaydah, Saada, Aden and Marib.

Meanwhile, Mr. Saleh’s supporters rallied in tens of thousands in Sabiine Square in Sana’s southern district chanting “the people want Ali Abdullah Saleh.”

They carried pictures of Mr. Saleh, recovering from bomb blast wounds in Riyadh, and Saudi Arabia’s King Abdullah on what they have named the Friday of “national alliance to protect constitutional legitimacy.”

Mr. Saleh, whose regime has been facing protests since January, said his ruling General People’s Congress party (GPC) stresses the need to “continue to deal positively with the Gulf initiative,” Saba state news agency reported Thursday.

The president who has been in office since 1978, and whose term ends in 2013, insisted, however, that the implementation of the Gulf proposal should be done “in accordance with the constitution.”

The deal proposed by the Gulf Cooperation Council in April stipulated that Mr. Saleh would submit his resignation to parliament 30 days after passing power to his vice president, and tasking the opposition with forming a national unity government shared equally between the GPC and the opposition.

Presidential elections would follow two months later.

The deal faltered in May after Mr. Saleh kept procrastinating over signing it, and in early June he was nearly killed in a bomb attack on his Sana’a compound.

However Mr. Saleh now says he will cooperate with the opposition and international powers to revive the plan to ease him from office.

His renewed interest in the plan, which he previously agreed to only to back out three times, follows prodding from US envoys to hand over power.

The UN Security Council echoed that call on Tuesday, citing a humanitarian crisis and a major threat by Al Qaeda.

The standoff over Mr. Saleh’s fate has paralyzed the Arab world’s poorest country, with Yemen’s multiple regional conflicts, including one with Islamists in a southern province, flaring up since protests against him broke out in January.

Neighboring Saudi Arabia and the United States, which long made Mr. Saleh a key to its counterterrorism policy, fear chaos in Yemen would embolden the country’s Al Qaeda wing, the apparent perpetrator of attempted attacks on Saudi and US targets.

Despite his absence, Mr. Saleh has not transferred power to Vice President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi, as family members who lead strong army and security forces appear to run the country.