Yemen’s opposition yesterday accused President Ali Abdullah Saleh of “manoeuvres” to gain time in an attempt to remain in power and insisted on his immediate departure.
This came as anti-regime protesters, camped at a square near the university in the capital Sanaa since February, vowed not to budge until Mr Saleh quits despite cancelling plans for a Friday march towards the presidential palace.
“The President throws his different cards here and there every minute and every day and manoeuvres... in an attempt to remain in power,” said Mohammed Qahtan the parliamentary opposition’s spokesman.
Last week, Mr Saleh reportedly offered to step down by the end of 2011, a proposal snubbed by the opposition. But his ruling party said he should serve out his current term until the next scheduled presidential election in 2013.
“There’s no choice for Saleh but to resign, and the opposition’s stance is tied to that of the protesters,” he said. “The opposition is heading towards escalating its civil peaceful movements until the regime falls.”
Meanwhile, a protesters’ spokes-man, Adel al-Dal, said: “The current situation ... does not allow the protesters to march towards the presidential palace” which is surrounded by troops loyal to Mr Saleh.
Mr Saleh has been faced with a popular uprising since the end of January, calling for an end to his 32-year rule. Fifty-two demonstrators were reported killed in a protest on March 18 alone.
According to Amnesty International, 95 people have been killed since anti-regime protests erupted late January.
Meanwhile, yesterday a military source said Mr Saleh tried last year to “get rid of” his rival, General Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar, who has now defected and emerged as a possible successor.
The source close to the general said, on condition of anonymity, that Yemeni artillery had fired barrages at posts in Malahiz held by soldiers under Gen. Ahmar’s command during a battle with Shiite rebels in northern Yemen.
“It was obvious the President wanted to get rid of General Ahmar because he stood in the way of plans to hand over power to his son,” Gen. Ahmad, who commands the elite Republican Guard, the official said.
He backed up a report in Norwegian newspaper Aftenposten on Monday, quoting a leaked US diplomatic cable, that Saleh had tried to eliminate Gen. Ahmar by misleading the Saudi air force into striking the general’s headquarters.
“In the winter of 2010,” Saudi fighter jets bombing Shiite rebellion targets in Yemen were directed to bomb a building that had been described as insurgent headquarters,” it said.
But the mission was aborted at the last minute when pilots realised they were about to bomb Gen. Ahmar’s headquarters.
The Norwegian daily, which announced last year it had obtained all 250,000 US diplomatic cables from whistleblowing website WikiLeaks, did not publish the cable’s content directly on its website as it has done in the past.
Also, the paper did not give a date for the cable which gave details of a “secret” meeting between US diplomats and Saudi Deputy Defence Minister Khaled bin Sultan on February 6, 2010.
In a major blow to Mr Saleh, Gen. Ahmar, commander of Yemen’s northwest military region which covers Sanaa and of an armoured tank division, earlier this month sided with protesters calling for the president’s ouster.
On Sunday, three days after the general held a meeting with the president that was termed a failure by both sides, Gen. Ahmar vowed to help bring about Mr Saleh’s overthrow.