Asia

Asia

Thousands of Yemenis protest against Saleh

03 February 2011 11:05 (UTC +04:00)

Thousands of people have taken to the streets of the Yemeni capital Sanaâ€™a in what the opposition has dubbed a â€œday of rageâ€ against the president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, APA reports.

The demonstration against corruption and the lack of democratic reform was thought to be larger than last weekâ€™s rally, which drew at least 10,000 people, and which prompted Mr Saleh to promise he would step down in 2013 and would not hand over power to his son. Opposition leaders and civil society activists however have greeted the pledge with scepticism, and say the government needs to show serious commitment to wide-ranging political reform. Government supporters also rallied in Sanaâ€™a on Thursday, and their demonstration was estimated by some eyewitnesses to be even bigger than the oppositionâ€™s. As of mid-morning, the atmosphere was peaceful, in spite of warnings by the pro-government press that demonstrations would bring about chaos. Yemen was at risk of major instability before the north African protests that have reverberated around the Arab world. It has chronic water shortages, an insurgency in the north, a secessionist movement in the south, heavily armed tribes, a flourishing al-Qaeda presence and soaring youth unemployment. Mr Saleh is a US ally in the â€œwar on terrorâ€, and the state news agency reported that Barack Obama, US president, telephoned Mr Saleh to express his support for the statement he issued on Wednesday