Yemen: What is next?
Published 05 June 2011 02:40 311 Views
He resisted months of mass protests, as his people demanded he step down. But a rocket attack has now forced Ali Abdullah Saleh to leave Yemen, and hand power to his deputy. Saleh is in Saudi Arabia for treatment to injuries he suffered in the attack on his palace. Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, the vice-president, has taken over as acting president, and commander of the armed forces. So, what is next for Yemen's rulers and its opposition?
What Next, is he coming back...UNLIKELY.
على متن طائرة إخلاء طبي بمعية 35 شخصاً
الرئيس اليمني يصل إلى السعودية لإزالة شظية بين القلب والرئة وعلاج حروق متفرقة
الرئيس اليمني يصل الى السعودية للعلاج
وصل الرئيس اليمني علي عبد الله صالح الذي جرح في قصف في صنعاء، مساء السبت الى الرياض حيث اكد مسؤول سعودي انه جاء للعلاج وسيعود الى اليمن.وفي صنعاء اكد مصدر
في القصر الرئاسي ان صالح غادر العاصمة اليمنية لكن رفض اضافة اي تفاصيل.
وحسب الدستور اليمني يفترض ان يتولى نائب الرئيس عبد ربه منصور هادي قيادة البلاد في غياب رئيس الدولة.
وقال مسؤول سعودي لوكالة فرانس برس طالبا عدم كشف هويته ان "الرئيس صالح وصل الى الرياض لتلقي العلاج ولكنه سيعود الى اليمن".
من جهته، اكد الديون الملكي السعودي في بيان ان "الرئيس صالح وصل برفقة اخرين من مسؤولين ومواطنين تعرضوا ممن تعرضوا لاصابات مختلفة لاستكمال علاجهم في المملكة جراء الاحداث التي جرت مؤخرا في اليمن".
واوضح البيان ان الرئيس اليمني نقل الى السعودية بعدما توجه فريق طبي متخصص بامر من العاهل السعودي الملك عبد الله بن العزيز و"استجابة لرغبة" اليمن، الى صنعاء.
واضاف ان الفريق الطبي "قام باجراء فحوصات طبية" لصالح "وآخرين من مسؤولين ومواطنين ممن تعرضوا لاصابات مختلفة".
وتابع البيان انه "بناء على ما رآه الفريق الطبي من انه من المناسب استكمال الرعاية الصحية التي يتلقاها الرئيس (اليمني) في احد المراكز الطبية المتقدمة وموافقته على ذلك ورغبته في ان يستكمل علاجه في المملكة (...) فقد وصل الى المملكة مساء السبت".
واضاف انه "تم استقبال عدد من المسؤولين والمواطنين اليمنيين لتلقي الرعاية الطبية اللازمة" في السعودية، مؤكدا استعداد المملكة "لاستقبال المصابين ممن تستدعي حالاتهم العلاج خارج" اليمن.
وعلى الرغم من التظاهرات الشعبية المستمرة في اليمن منذ اربعة اشهر والضغوط الدولية، مغادرة السلطة التي يتولاها منذ 33 عاما.
وقد رفض خصوصا توقيع خطة وضعتها الدول العربية الخليجية ومن بينها السعودية من اجل انتقال سلمي للسلطة.
وقال المسؤول السعودي لفرانس برس ان الرئيس اليمني وصل على متن طائرة طبية سعودية ونقل على الفور الى المستشفى العسكري في العاصمة السعودية، بينما تقل طائرة ثانية افرادا من عائلته.
واشار الى ان نجله البكر احمد، قائد الحرس الجمهوري (قوات النخبة) الذي كانت المعارضة قبل بدء حركة الاحتجاج الشعبي، تتهم الرئيس بانه يستعد لتوريثه السلطة، بقي في اليمن.
وكان الرئيس اليمني اصيب بجروح الجمعة عندما سقطت قذيفة في مسجد القصر الجمهوري اثناء الصلاة، في قصف اوقع 11 قتيلا و124 جريحا، حسب مسؤول حكومي.
واعلن مسؤول مقرب من صالح ان الرئيس "اصيب بحروق وخدوش في وجهه وصدره" وحالته لا تدعو الى القلق، قبل ان يؤكد صالح بنفسه في تسجيل صوتي بثه التلفزيون اليمني الحكومي انه بخير.
وقالت وكالة الانباء اليمنية الرسمية (سبأ) ان رئيس الوزراء علي مجور واربعة من كبار مسؤولي النظام اليمني كانوا جرحوا في القصف، نقلوا الى السعودية للعلاج.
وذكرت وكالة الانباء اليمنية ان المسؤولين الاربعة الذين نقلوا الى السعودية للعلاج هم رئيس مجلس النواب يحيى الراعي ورئيس مجلس الشورى عبد العزيز عبد الغني ونائب رئيس الوزراء للشؤون الداخلية صادق امين ابو راس ونظيره لشؤون الدفاع والامن راشد محمد العليمي.
وقد اتهم صالح آل الاحمر الذين يخوضون منذ 23 ايار/مايو معارك دامية مع قواته باستهدافه متوعدا بمحاربتهم وملاحقتهم.
واعقب الهجوم على القصر الرئاسي، قصف لمقار آل الاحمر في جنوب العاصمة، مما اسفر عن مقتل عشرة اشخاص وجرح 35 اخرين في القصف الذي استهدف منزل الزعيم القبلي الشيخ صادق الاحمر في جنوب صنعاء.
والسبت استمر تبادل اطلاق النار متقطعا في حي الحصبة شمال صنعاء الذي شهد لليلة الخامسة على التوالي اشتباكات عنيفة بقذائف الهاون والصواريخ بحسب شهود عيان. وافادت مصادر طبية ان مدنيا قتل واصيب اخرون بالرصاص او بشظايا قذائف.
واستمر سكان حي الحصبة والاحياء المجاورة في الفرار بسبب انقطاع المياه والتيار الكهربائي جراء اعمال العنف.
وفي تعز على بعد 270 كلم جنوب غرب صنعاء، دارت معارك السبت بين قوات الرئيس اليمني ومسلحين كانوا يتولون حماية مئات المحتجين في ساحة الحرية حيث تم تفريق معتصمين بالقوة الاثنين ما اسفر عن سقوط اكثر من خمسين قتيلا بحسب ما افاد شهود عيان.
وعبرت السعودية في بيان الديوان الملكي مساء السبت عن المها لما يتعرض له اليمن من احداث عنف ترتب عليها سقوط القتلى والجرحى"، داعية كل الاطراف الى "ضبط النفس وتحكيم العقل لتجنيب اليمن مخاطر الانزلاق الى المزيد من العنف والاقتتال
".صالح في السعودية للعلاج ونائبه يتولى صلاحياته
وصل الرئيس اليمني علي عبد الله صالح الذي جرح في قصف في صنعاء، مساء السبت الى الرياض حيث اكد مسؤول سعودي انه جاء للعلاج وسيعود الى اليمن.وفي صنعاء اكد مصدرفي القصر الرئاسي ان صالح غادر العاصمة اليمنية لكن رفض اضافة اي تفاصيل.وحسب الدستور اليمني يفترض ان يتولى نائب الرئيس عبد ربه منصور هادي قيادة البلاد في غياب رئيس الدولة. وقال مسؤول سعودي لوكالة فرانس برس طالبا عدم كشف هويته ان "الرئيس صالح وصل الى الرياض لتلقي العلاج ولكنه سيعود الى اليمن". من جهته، اكد الديون الملكي السعودي في بيان ان "الرئيس صالح وصل برفقة اخرين من مسؤولين ومواطنين تعرضوا ممن تعرضوا لاصابات مختلفة لاستكمال علاجهم في المملكة جراء الاحداث التي جرت مؤخرا في اليمن". واوضح البيان ان الرئيس اليمني نقل الى السعودية بعدما توجه فريق طبي متخصص بامر من العاهل السعودي الملك عبد الله بن العزيز و"استجابة لرغبة" اليمن، الى صنعاء. واضاف ان الفريق الطبي "قام باجراء فحوصات طبية" لصالح "وآخرين من مسؤولين ومواطنين ممن تعرضوا لاصابات مختلفة". وتابع البيان انه "بناء على ما رآه الفريق الطبي من انه من المناسب استكمال الرعاية الصحية التي يتلقاها الرئيس (اليمني) في احد المراكز الطبية المتقدمة وموافقته على ذلك ورغبته في ان يستكمل علاجه في المملكة (...) فقد وصل الى المملكة مساء السبت". واضاف انه "تم استقبال عدد من المسؤولين والمواطنين اليمنيين لتلقي الرعاية الطبية اللازمة" في السعودية، مؤكدا استعداد المملكة "لاستقبال المصابين ممن تستدعي حالاتهم العلاج خارج" اليمن. وعلى الرغم من التظاهرات الشعبية المستمرة في اليمن منذ اربعة اشهر والضغوط الدولية، مغادرة السلطة التي يتولاها منذ 33 عاما. وقد رفض خصوصا توقيع خطة وضعتها الدول العربية الخليجية ومن بينها السعودية من اجل انتقال سلمي للسلطة. وقال المسؤول السعودي لفرانس برس ان الرئيس اليمني وصل على متن طائرة طبية سعودية ونقل على الفور الى المستشفى العسكري في العاصمة السعودية، بينما تقل طائرة ثانية افرادا من عائلته. واشار الى ان نجله البكر احمد، قائد الحرس الجمهوري (قوات النخبة) الذي كانت المعارضة قبل بدء حركة الاحتجاج الشعبي، تتهم الرئيس بانه يستعد لتوريثه السلطة، بقي في اليمن. وكان الرئيس اليمني اصيب بجروح الجمعة عندما سقطت قذيفة في مسجد القصر الجمهوري اثناء الصلاة، في قصف اوقع 11 قتيلا و124 جريحا، حسب مسؤول حكومي. واعلن مسؤول مقرب من صالح ان الرئيس "اصيب بحروق وخدوش في وجهه وصدره" وحالته لا تدعو الى القلق، قبل ان يؤكد صالح بنفسه في تسجيل صوتي بثه التلفزيون اليمني الحكومي انه بخير. وقالت وكالة الانباء اليمنية الرسمية (سبأ) ان رئيس الوزراء علي مجور واربعة من كبار مسؤولي النظام اليمني كانوا جرحوا في القصف، نقلوا الى السعودية للعلاج. وذكرت وكالة الانباء اليمنية ان المسؤولين الاربعة الذين نقلوا الى السعودية للعلاج هم رئيس مجلس النواب يحيى الراعي ورئيس مجلس الشورى عبد العزيز عبد الغني ونائب رئيس الوزراء للشؤون الداخلية صادق امين ابو راس ونظيره لشؤون الدفاع والامن راشد محمد العليمي. وقد اتهم صالح آل الاحمر الذين يخوضون منذ 23 ايار/مايو معارك دامية مع قواته باستهدافه متوعدا بمحاربتهم وملاحقتهم. واعقب الهجوم على القصر الرئاسي، قصف لمقار آل الاحمر في جنوب العاصمة، مما اسفر عن مقتل عشرة اشخاص وجرح 35 اخرين في القصف الذي استهدف منزل الزعيم القبلي الشيخ صادق الاحمر في جنوب صنعاء. والسبت استمر تبادل اطلاق النار متقطعا في حي الحصبة شمال صنعاء الذي شهد لليلة الخامسة على التوالي اشتباكات عنيفة بقذائف الهاون والصواريخ بحسب شهود عيان. وافادت مصادر طبية ان مدنيا قتل واصيب اخرون بالرصاص او بشظايا قذائف. واستمر سكان حي الحصبة والاحياء المجاورة في الفرار بسبب انقطاع المياه والتيار الكهربائي جراء اعمال العنف. وفي تعز على بعد 270 كلم جنوب غرب صنعاء، دارت معارك السبت بين قوات الرئيس اليمني ومسلحين كانوا يتولون حماية مئات المحتجين في ساحة الحرية حيث تم تفريق معتصمين بالقوة الاثنين ما اسفر عن سقوط اكثر من خمسين قتيلا بحسب ما افاد شهود عيان. وعبرت السعودية في بيان الديوان الملكي مساء السبت عن المها لما يتعرض له اليمن من احداث عنف ترتب عليها سقوط القتلى والجرحى"، داعية كل الاطراف الى "ضبط النفس وتحكيم العقل لتجنيب اليمن مخاطر الانزلاق الى المزيد من العنف والاقتتال ".صالح في السعودية للعلاج ونائبه يتولى صلاحياته |
آخر تحديث: الأحد، 5 يونيو/ ح17 GMT
| وصول الرئيس اليمني علي عبدالله صالح إلى السعودية لتلقي العلاج |
أعلن مسؤول سعودي، فضّل عدم الكشف عن هويته، لوكالة "فرانس برس"، أنّ الرئيس اليمني علي عبدالله صالح الذي أصيب بجروح في القصر الرئاسي بصنعاء، وصل مساء السبت الى الرياض لتلقي العلاج. وأكّد هذا المسؤول، في الوقت عينه، أنّ الرئيس اليمني لم يتخل عن السلطة وهو ينوي العودة الى اليمن".
وإذ أوضح أنّ صالح "وصل على متن طائرة طبية سعودية على أن تنقل طائرة ثانية أفرادًا من عائلته"، أشار المسؤول السعودي إلى أنّه تمّ "نقله على الفور الى المستشفى العسكري في العاصمة السعودية"، لافتًا إلى أنّ نجله البكر احمد، قائد الحرس الجمهوري (وحدات النخبة) بقي في اليمن.
يشار إلى أنّه، وطبقًا للدستور اليمني، يتولى نائب الرئيس عبد ربو منصور هادي السلطة خلال غياب رئيس الدولة.
وإذ أوضح أنّ صالح "وصل على متن طائرة طبية سعودية على أن تنقل طائرة ثانية أفرادًا من عائلته"، أشار المسؤول السعودي إلى أنّه تمّ "نقله على الفور الى المستشفى العسكري في العاصمة السعودية"، لافتًا إلى أنّ نجله البكر احمد، قائد الحرس الجمهوري (وحدات النخبة) بقي في اليمن.
يشار إلى أنّه، وطبقًا للدستور اليمني، يتولى نائب الرئيس عبد ربو منصور هادي السلطة خلال غياب رئيس الدولة.
President Saleh 'leaves Yemen'
Published 04 June 2011 19:10 311 Views
Yemen's president Ali Abdullah Saleh has reportedly left his country to seek medical treatment in neighbouring Saudi Arabia. He was injured in a rocket attack on the presidential palace in Sanaa on Friday. But the Yemeni government says he is in good health and denies reports that he has left the country. Al Jazeera's Bhanu Bhatnagar reports
The Injured Saleh leave to Saoudia
Dictator.
Attacks on President of Yemen in Sanaa.
Uncertainty over Yemen attack
Published 04 June 2011 14:44 238 Views
The Yemeni presidential palace came under fire on Friday. Seven people died and president Ali Abdullah Saleh was injured. The government has blamed the al-Ahmar tribe for the attack. But some residents in Sanaa suspect that the raid could actually be orchestrated by the president himself. Al Jazeera's Bhanu Bhatnagar reports
Will Al Qaeda take power in Yemen, CNN: NO, but advantages
Why we should care about Yemen
June 4, 2011 -- Updated 0010 GMT (0810 HKT)
(CNN) -- At first glance, it might seem that Yemen -- like Somalia -- is a place we should best forget about. It has few proven natural resources, its hinterland is largely barren and inaccessible, and it has a long history of being virtually impossible to govern. But first impressions can be misleading, and if Yemen were to sink into a state of anarchy the implications for the Gulf region and beyond would be profound.
Location, location, location
When I first visited Yemen in 1987, President Ali Abdullah Saleh (yes, he had already been in power for nearly a decade) was cleverly playing one foreign suitor against another. The Chinese were building roads, the United States had a variety of aid schemes (and Hunt Oil of Texas was exploring for hydrocarbons), and the Russians were selling weapons. Yemen was an important place to be in the global chess game.
Yemen's oil potential has turned out (so far) to be less exciting than was once thought, but its strategic location still matters. To the north and west it has a long porous border with Saudi Arabia, which is very concerned that instability in Yemen -- and the growing al Qaeda presence there -- could spill over. Saudi Arabia has begun a multibillion-dollar project to make its 1,100-mile border with Yemen more secure, including fences and barbed wire in areas most vulnerable.
Since 9/11 the Saudis have invested heavily in stamping out the threat at home from al Qaeda, and the last thing they want is contagion seeping in from next door. The same applies to Oman, Yemen's other neighbor in the south.
Saudi Arabia has also been concerned by what it sees as Iranian meddling in Yemen in support of the rebellion by the Houthis (a Shiite minority in the north). Already apprehensive about unrest among their own Shiite minority, the Saudis last year used air power to help the Saleh government subdue the Houthi rebellion. Iran has denied that it has helped the Houthis, but criticized the Saudi intervention.
Sea ports
The city of Aden in southern Yemen has long been an important port at the crossroads of some of the world's busiest sea lanes. It was built up as a coal station for British merchant ships traveling to India, and its large natural harbor should make it a regional hub. But a lack of investment and political instability has hampered its development.
The Gulf of Aden, off Yemen's coast, sees huge tonnage in merchant shipping: every day some 3 million barrels of oil pass through these waters. To the north is the Suez Canal and refineries at the Saudi port of Yanbu; to the south are the Indian Ocean and shipping lanes to energy-hungry Asian markets.
These are the sea lanes already prowled by Somali pirates, and the Yemeni coast guard has been part of an international operation to protect shipping. More instability in Yemen, and the possibility that pirates could begin to use its long and sparsely populated coastline, could make shipping in the region even more vulnerable.
Yemen also overlooks a maritime "choke-point" -- a narrow passage like the Strait of Hormuz at the tip of the Persian Gulf. At its narrowest, the Bab el Mandeb strait is just 12 miles wide -- Yemen on one side and Djibouti on the other. Little wonder Djibouti has become an important outpost for the U.S. and French military.
Somalia
Somalia's chaos is just across the Gulf of Aden from Yemen, which is why thousands of Somalis have fled in recent years to seek sanctuary in Yemen, risking piracy and shipwreck in the process. They leave Bosaso on the northern Somali coast and hope to arrive somewhere along the Yemeni coast. An estimated 70,000 Somalis arrived in 2009 alone, and there are now an estimated one million Somalis living in Yemen, many of them almost destitute.
Left to its own devices, Yemen is unlikely to muddle through, with consequences that range far beyond the Arabian Peninsula.
--Former U.S. Ambassador Edmund Hull, writing in Foreign Policy
--Former U.S. Ambassador Edmund Hull, writing in Foreign Policy
Yemen has very openly expressed concerns that Islamists in Somalia (in the Shabaab movement that is affiliated with al Qaeda) may be exploiting this exodus. At least currently there is some monitoring and control of the Somalis arriving in Yemen; but many of them live in wretched refugee camps that could be recruiting grounds for Islamist movements. In addition, intelligence sources fear growing collaboration between Al Shabaab and al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula.
Growing instability in Yemen could lead to the nightmare scenario: a failing state and a failed state either side of important shipping lanes, and close to the world's most important oil-producing region.
Oil and gas -- and a crumbling economy
Yemen is a minor player among oil and natural gas producers, but at a time when Libya and Iraq are producing less than their potential, and supply is tightening worldwide, its contribution should not be dismissed.
Yemen is the world's 32nd biggest oil exporter and 16th biggest seller of liquefied natural gas, and there may be greater potential to unlock. But Yemeni production is currently headed south -- from more than 400,000 barrels per day in 2003 to less than 300,000 in 2009. Unrest, a lack of foreign investment and sabotage of pipelines have all contributed to a dire outlook for Yemen's oil industry, which is essential to the government's revenues.
The unrest in Yemen has affected many basic services -- including power and water -- and brought an already feeble economy close to collapse. That matters beyond Yemen: It could prompt an exodus of desperate people and help feed an insurgency that thrives in a vacuum. Already, hundreds of people try to get into Saudi Arabia illegally every day. And if outside powers want to prevent a total collapse of the Yemeni economy, they will need deep pockets.
A homeland for al Qaeda
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You only have to look at the list of detainees at Guantanamo Bay to know that Yemen has been a fruitful recruiting ground for al Qaeda. The great majority of the 800 prisoners listed in recently published detainee assessments were Yemenis.
Back in the 1990s, most of Osama bin Laden's bodyguards were recruited from Yemen. Radical imams and other recruiters in Yemen provided money and made travel arrangements for would-be jihadists. Some of the al Qaeda sympathizers arrested in Yemen (and many were not) escaped in a spectacular jail break in 2006
In recent years, Yemen has become a haven for a variety of jihadists who have gravitated to a growing al Qaeda affiliate with a flair for self-publicity and innovative bomb plots. They have included several U.S. citizens and a number of Europeans.
U.S. counterterrorism officials regard al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula as the most active operational franchise of the terror group, and it certainly has international ambitions. Among recent terror plots hatched in Yemen:
• The attempted bombing of a U.S. airliner, in which a young Nigerian who spent time in Yemen has been charged, and for which al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula has claimed responsibility;
• An assassination attempt against the Saudi intelligence chief by a Saudi national who was supposedly going to give himself up. He hid high explosives in his underwear.
• The shipping of two printers containing the almost untraceable explosive PETN on board cargo planes bound for the United States. The devices appeared designed to explode as the planes approached or arrived at their U.S. destinations. Neither exploded but forensic investigators and counterterrorism sources have told CNN that their assembly was sophisticated; and despite intelligence supplied by the Saudis they were difficult to locate among the thousands of packages carried by air every day. The plot set off a massive hunt for packages that might have originated in Yemen.
Yemen is also home to one of the most charismatic of al Qaeda's new generation, the English-speaking cleric Anwar al-Awlaki, and several other American jihadists accomplished in relating the terrorists' goals to a global audience through the Internet, using glossy online publications such as Inspire.
There are signs that the current unrest, with government forces now focused on combating Saleh's opponents, is allowing al Qaeda and other militant groups greater latitude, especially in the south. Earlier this week several hundred militants took over the southern coastal city of Zinjibar. Should the elite Central Security Force be dragged into what is virtually a civil war, and away from its counterterrorism role, al Qaeda's breathing space in Yemen will be all the greater.
The view from Washington
U.S. aid to Yemen has fluctuated over the years, depending on how grave the terror threat is perceived to be. Recently it has been substantially increased, both in terms of military training and equipment and economic assistance. US Agency for International Development funding increased from a meager $9.3 million in 2008 to $24 million in 2009.
Today, policy-makers in Washington recognize that should Yemen descend into chaos, or should Saleh be succeeded by a regime hostile to the United States, the problems would be manifold.
A former U.S. ambassador in Sanaa, Edmund Hull, wrote this week in Foreign Policy: "Left to its own devices, Yemen is unlikely to muddle through, with consequences that range far beyond the Arabian Peninsula. A concerted, multilayered diplomatic effort can succeed. Even a skilled political dancer like Ali Abdullah Saleh can't defy gravity forever."
But time is now of the essence as casualties mount, divisions deepen, and a revolt verges on becoming civil war.
Comparing Libya to Yemen, former CIA Director Michael Hayden told CNN's "State of the Union" a few weeks back: "In geo-political terms, it (Libya) is somewhat self-limiting. That's not the case with Yemen. We have a thriving al Qaeda affiliate in Yemen. We have more than a million Yemeni expatriates, guest workers, throughout the Gulf region. What happens in Yemen bleeds out much more quickly than what happens in Libya."
In February, the director of the National Counterterrorism Center, Michael Leiter, was more specific about the risk posed to the United States. "I actually consider al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula with al-Awlaki as a leader within that organization probably the most significant risk to the U.S. homeland," he said.
Like markets, policy-makers dislike uncertainty. As Hayden put it: "This is fundamentally a tribal society, so what comes after (Saleh) is very unpredictable, and it's hard for me to imagine that it's going to be good news for us, at least in the short term, in the global war on terror."
In the wake of the Christmas Day 2009 attempt to blow up a U.S. airliner as it approached Detroit, Deputy National Security Advisor John Brennan said: "What we need to do is continue to work very closely with our Yemeni partners and other international partners to make sure that we're able to drive al Qaeda down within Yemen, because they do present a serious threat there, but also abroad."
Brennan, the president's chief counterterrorism advisor, is currently in the region exploring ways to end Yemen's ever-deepening crisis and Saleh's rule. Just who "our Yemeni partners" will be a year, or even a month, from now is an open question.
علي صالح الجريح والمحتجب يتوعّد آل الأحمر "عاجلاً أم آجلاً"
صنعاء – أبو بكر عبدالله:في تصعيد خطير للوضع في اليمن، اصيب الرئيس علي عبدالله صالح بجروح في هجوم بقذيفة صاروخية استهدفته بينما كان يؤدي الصلاة في مسجد القصر الرئاسي، بينما قتل امام المسجد الشيخ علي محسن المطري وثلاثة من الحراس.
وتوعد الرئيس الذي منعته "خدوش" أصيب بها من الظهور علنا، في رسالة صوتية مقتضبة بثها التلفزيون اليمني خصومه من آل الاحمر زعماء قبيلة حاشد الذين ألقى عليهم تبعة محاولة اغتياله بمحاربتهم وملاحقتهم.
وقال: "سنتابع الجناة عاجلاً أم آجلاً بالتعاون مع كل اجهزة الامن ونحيي ابناء القوات المسلحة في كل مكان الثابتين لمواجهة هذا التحدي والصلف من عصابة خارجة عن القانون ليس لها علاقة بثورة الشباب".
وبدا علي صالح متأثراً باصابته، ووصف مسلحي الشيخ صادق الاحمر زعيم قبيلة حاشد بانهم "عصابة مسلحة احتلوا مؤسسات الدولة والوزارات وليس لها علاقة بأي ثورة وهي حركة انقالبية". وأمل ان "يخرج الشعب اليمني من هذه المحنة"، مشيرا الى ان "الحادث وقع في ظل وساطة بين الدولة وعصابة التمرد من اولاد الاحمر... نهيب بالقوات المسلحة تصفية مؤسسات الدولة من هذه العصابة". وافاد ان الحادث تبسب بمقتل سبعة ضباط.
وتضاربت الانباء عن مدى خطورة الاصابة التي لحقت بعلي صالح، اذ قال مسؤول كبير في الحزب الحاكم ان "الرئيس صالح اصيب اصابة خفيفة في مؤخر الرأس". وقال مسؤول آخر انه اصيب بجروح طفيفة في رقبته.
ونفى آل الاحمر ان يكونوا وراء الهجوم واتهموا الرئيس اليمني بتدبيره لزج البلاد في حرب أهلية. (راجع العرب والعالم)
Explosion heard in Sanaa overnight
Yemen Crisis Deepen
Yemeni president, PM, other senior officials hurt in shelling
From Mohammed Jamjoom and Hakim Almasmari, CNN
June 3, 2011 -- Updated 1406 GMT (2206 HKT)
CNN) -- Yemen's president, prime minister and other senior government officials were injured on Friday during the shelling of the presidential compound in Sanaa, a government spokesman said.
This comes as government forces and tribesmen slugged it out in the capital and demonstrators poured onto the streets of the impoverished country to demand that the President Ali Abdullah Saleh step down.
Saleh sustained a slight injury to the head in an attack on the mosque in the presidential palace, but he is fine, a senior government official told CNN. The president plans to address the media later on Friday.
Government spokesman Tareq al-Shami said Prime Minister Ali Mujawar, the parliament speaker, deputy prime minister, and the Sanaa governor were among seven injured.
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"The officials were praying when the shelling hit a mosque in the presidential compound. A number of the injured are in serious condition," Tareq al-Shami, a government spokesman, said.
It was not immediately clear whether Saleh was among the seven Al-Shami mentioned.
Tribal fighters and the regime's forces in Sanaa had been battling with missiles.
The fighters shot missiles at the presidential palace and the government responded by launching missile strikes on a dissident tribal leader's property.
In Taiz, government security forces and gunmen protecting protesters fought street battles.
The security forces began shooting at protesters assembled in the city's Freedom Square, and gunmen supporting the demonstrators burned an armored vehicle belonging to security forces.
Abdullah Afti, a youth activist in Taiz, said four anti-government protesters had been shot during Friday prayers.
The White House called for "calm and restraint" and said the dispute between pro- and anti-government forces "must be solved through negotiations."
"We've seen the reports and are very concerned about violence in Yemen," White House spokesman Tommy Vietor said.
Fighting has rippled across Yemen for months between supporters of Saleh and anti-government forces who want him out of office. Discontent has rippled across the country and demonstrations have been common.
But late last month, battling between pro-Saleh forces and tribal elements added a new element to the instability in the country.
The International Crisis Group recently said that on May 23 fighting erupted between military forces controlled by "Saleh's son and nephews and fighters loyal to the preeminent sheikh of the powerful Hashed confederation, Sadiq al-Ahmar."
"The personal animosity and competition between the sons of the late Sheikh Abdullah bin Hussein al-Ahmar (Sadiq and his nine brothers) and the sons and nephews of Saleh have been a consistent obstacle to negotiations over a peaceful transfer of power. Now, this animus threatens to drag the country toward a full-scale civil war," the group said.
The fighting has focused on these groups but "it could easily escalate, drawing in other tribal factions" and the armed confrontation has already led to the deaths of more than 100 people, the ICG said in a "conflict risk alert" last Friday.
"During the course of a tribal mediation attempt, Saleh's security forces fired on Sadiq's home, killing several prominent sheikhs and injuring dozens of other individuals, including one of the president's closest allies and trusted negotiators, Ghalib Ghamish -- head of Political Security, Yemen's intelligence service," the ICG said.
The urban battles leave Sanaa's population "at great risk."
"Hundreds are fleeing, fearing a tribal invasion from the countryside," the ICG said.
While Saleh has been unpopular among many inside his country, he has been a longtime ally of the United States in the war against terror.
The United States has counted on his government to be a bulwark against militants, including al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, but it believes he should transfer power in order to maintain stability in the country.
White House spokesman Vietor said that John Brennan, the president's homeland security adviser, just traveled to Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates for meetings with government officials to "discuss options to address the deteriorating situation" in Yemen.
The Obama administration has been disappointed in Saleh's "continued refusal" to sign the Gulf Cooperation Council initiative.
The GCC, a coalition of six Gulf Arab nations, came up with a plan for a peaceful and orderly transfer of power that would lead to Saleh's departure.
"It's a very concerning situation. Violence is persistent over the past week or so, ever since President Saleh once again backed away from the table and decided not to sign what we believe was a very valid GCC agreement that really would chart a way forward," State Department spokesman Mark Toner said on Thursday.
"In that time, our ambassador there has consistently been in touch with the Yemeni government. And again, our efforts are trying to convince President Saleh that this agreement is the best way forward, it ... charts a path, if you will, for Yemen to move out of this period of crisis and to move towards a democratic transition."
أُصيب الرئيس اليمني علي عبدالله صالح بجروح إثر سقوط قذائف على مسجد دار الرئاسة في صنعاء، على ما اعلن مصدر أمني لوكالة "فرانس برس"، ولاحقاً أعلن التلفزيون الحكومي اليمني أن صالح "بخير وعافية".
إلى ذلك أوضح المصدر الأمني اليمني أن أربعة من ضباط الحرس الرئاسي اليمني قتلوا في الهجوم بالقذائف على مسجد دار الرئاسة.
أعلن المتحدث بإسم الحزب الحاكم في اليمن طارق الشامي لوكالة "فرانس برس" أن شخصيات سياسية بينهم رئيس الوزراء ورئيس مجلس النواب أُصيبوا بجروح اليوم الجمعة إثر سقوط قذائف على دار الرئاسة اليمنية في صنعاء، وأوضح الشامي أن هؤلاء المسؤولين كانوا يؤدون صلاة الجمعة في مسجد دار الرئاسة.
واتّهم الشامي الزعيم النافذ لقبائل "حاشد" الشيخ صادق الاحمر الذي يقاتل القوات الحكومية في حي شمال صنعاء، بالمسؤولية عن اطلاق النار، وأضاف: "أولاد الأحمر تجاوزوا كل الخطوط الحمر ووضعوا أنفسهم امام موقف حرج وصعب". هذا وترددت أنباء غير مؤكدة عن وجود الرئيس اليمني علي عبدالله صالح في دار الرئاسة وتعرّضه هو ايضًا للإصابة. |
Yemeni opposition leader talks to Al Jazeera
Published 03 June 2011 05:30 289 Views
Abdul Rahman Bafadil, a Yemeni Opposition leader and member of the country's parliament, spoke to Al Jazeera in Doh
Yemen update: Fighting rages in Sanaa
Armed tribesmen battle Yemeni forces
Published 02 June 2011 15:20 1132 Views
Thousands of armed tribesmen are reported to be heading to the Yemeni capital to battle forces of President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Several days of fighting in Sanaa have claimed the lives of at least forty people. Al Jazeera's Bernard Smith reports
Example of Arab Dictator's ENDING.
The Hague, Netherlands (CNN) -- Bosnian Serb genocide suspect Ratko Mladic told the U.N. war crimes tribunal that he was a "gravely ill man" during his first appearance at The Hague on Friday morning.
The suspect appeared in court dressed in a gray striped suit, matching tie and a military cap -- which he removed once he sat down. He listened impassively as a judge advised him he has the right to remain silent. The court then read the charges against him, including genocide.
"His arrest confirms that no one can have impunity for the crimes they've committed," said Serge Brammertz, the prosecutor of the International Criminal Tribunal for the former Yugoslavia (ICTY).
"I hear many people commenting that his arrest ends an important chapter for international criminal justice. But the process of establishing Rako Mladic's accountability has only just begun," he said.
'Mladic thought he was Serb protector' Mladic captured after 16 years Rally against arrest of Ratko Mladic Mladic: A ruin of a man?
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Ratko Mladic
Serbia
The Hague
Mladic, 69, was the commander of Bosnian Serb forces during the civil war in Bosnia-Herzegovina, the bloodiest of the conflicts that accompanied Yugoslavia's breakup in the 1990s.
The years since, Brammertz said, "is a long time to wait for justice. It is a long time to know that someone responsible for their trauma is walking free. We understand why the victims have been impatient for their day and we recognize their courage."
Mladic was taken to the Hague on Wednesday, a day earlier after losing his fight against extradition from Serbia. He was charged with genocide, crimes against humanity and violations of the laws of war.
An amended indictment was filed on Wednesday against Mladic to make sure charges "reflect the most recent developments in the Tribunal's case law."
Brammertz said the transfer brings the tribunal closer to completing its mandate to capture those responsible for the most serious crimes in the former Yugoslavia.
"As a result of the arrest, today only one of the 161 persons indicted by the Tribunal remains at large," Brammertz said, referring to Goran Hadzic, a political leader of the Serbian entity in Croatia during the mid-90s.
Mladic is accused of leading a campaign of "ethnic cleansing" against Bosnia's Muslim and Croat populations that included the shelling of Sarajevo and the torture, abuse and rape of civilians.
More than 200,000 Muslims and Croats died in the 1992-95 conflict, including nearly 8,000 Muslim men and boys slaughtered at Srebrenica in 1995 -- Europe's worst massacre since World War II.
"He was the most powerful military figure in Bosnia during the war. He's charged with crimes that shocked the conscience of the international community," Brammertz said on Wednesday.
Mladic's lawyer, Milos Saljic, argues that Mladic would not be able to participate in a trial at The Hague because of his ill health.
Saljic said he wants Mladic examined by specialists "who can investigate his specific needs," including a gastroenterologist, a cardiologist, a psychiatrist and a neurologist.
Mladic's son, Darko, told an ultranationalist rally Sunday that his father "needs medical treatment that he is not getting."
But Serbia's chief prosecutor, Vladimir Vukcevic, said Mladic was "lively and joking," and had asked for Russian classics to read while being held in Belgrade.
John Hocking, the court registrar, said it's up to the judges to determine whether he's unfit to stand trial.
"My role is to ensure that detainees receive the best medical attention and care," Hocking said.
"He'll get the full treatments that any of our detainees would receive. We provide the best medical facilities available to all of our detainees. At this stage, it's all very much routine."
He and Mladic communicated through interpreters during his induction at The Hague. He said Mladic was cooperative and "we communicated extremely well."
Mladic gave himself up without a fight May 26, despite having two handguns, according to Rasim Ljajic, the government minister in charge of searching for fugitive suspected war criminals.
Officials located Mladic in a village called Lazarevo, north of the Serbian capital, after culling information from his former comrades, those who supported him financially and his close family members. It is not clear what source led investigators to the former military commander.
The arrest clears a major hurdle that once stood between Serbia and its long-awaited entrance into the European Union, but the move could also usher in political backlash from the country's electorate, some of whom consider Mladic a hero.
Speaking to a Serbian Radical Party demonstration outside Belgrade's parliament building Sunday, Darko Mladic described his father as "a freedom fighter." The elder Mladic "defended his own nation, defended his people, which was his job," his son said.
The other fugitive war criminal suspects previously captured are Bosnian Serb leader Radovan Karadzic and former Serbian President Slobodan Milosevic, who died in jail in 2006 during his trial at The Hague.
Authorities say it's theoretically possible that the trials could be merged.
"The Karadzic trial is now ongoing for one and a half years. Based on the rules of proceedings it's still theoretically possible to envision a possible joinder. No decision has been taken in this regard," Brammertz said.
As for Hadzic, he is charged with a number of crimes committed in Croatia's eastern Slavonia region. They include the murder and persecution of Croatian and non-Serbian civilians, imprisonment of civilians in jails where there were torture, beatings and killings, and the forced transfer of non-Serbs.
مجزرة في تعز.. وحرق خيام المعتصمين
آلاف اليمنيين يتظاهرون أمس في إب (جنوب غربي اليمن) تضامنا مع المحتجين في تعز
دخلت الأحداث الأمنية في اليمن، أمس، منعطفا خطيرا بعد سقوط ما لا يقل عن 57 قتيلا وأكثر من 1000 جريح بين معتصمي ساحة الحرية في مجزرة شهدتها مدينة تعز جنوب اليمن على يد قوى الأمن والبلطجية.
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