Thousands of Yemenis staged a show of defiance yesterday, demanding the president step down as eight ruling party MPs resigned over widening protests that have left 15 people dead in a week.

Clashes at demonstrations in the southern province of Hadramawt, as well as in the port city of Aden yesterday, a sign of growing pressure on President Ali Abdullah Saleh who has ruled Yemen for 32 years.

“Enough! Enough! The criminal attacks during the night!,” chanted young demonstrators encamped at Sanaa University, where regime loyalists opened fire overnight, killing two of them and wounding 23, said witnesses and medics.

Around 1,000 students have camped for four days at a square near Sanaa University, which they have dubbed Al-Huriya (Liberty) Square and where they have erected a huge tent.

“The sit-in will continue until the fall of the regime,” the protesters chanted.

Mr Saleh, who is one of the region’s great survivors, has vowed not to quit and on Monday accused his opponents of fuelling the demonstrations.

“I will only leave through the ballot box,” he said.

Witnesses said protesters also gathered in Mukallah, in Hadramout.

Student demonstrators clashed with police and three students were wounded, one seriously, said a civil society organisation spokesman, Nasser Baqazqouz.

Clashes also broke out between police and separatist demonstrators outside a police station in Aden, Yemen’s main southern port city.

Thousands of anti-government demonstrators protested overnight in the city, chanting “the people want to topple the regime” and “no work, no teaching until the fall of the president.”

Thousands continued a sit-in in the Al-Mansura neighbourhood of Aden yesterday, chanting: “No talking, no dialogue until the system falls.”

Aref al-Yafii, a demonstrator who was shot in Al-Mansura last week, died of his wounds, a hospital official said.

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