Asia-Pacific

Yemen's president vows no retreat as battles rage

(Agencies)
Updated: 2011-05-26 14:19

SANAA - Yemen's embattled President Ali Abdullah Saleh has vowed he would not step down or allow his impoverished nation to become a "failed state" even as urban combat between government troops and armed tribesmen engulfed parts of the capital.

Both sides raised the specter of civil war as the three-day death toll from fighting rose to at least 69 on Wednesday. The latest violence comes just days after a failed Arab mediation effort to end the three-month uprising and ease Saleh from power.

Related readings:  Yemen president says won't be dragged into civil war  Officials: 38 killed in fighting in Yemen capital  Over 70 killed in Yemeni clashes  Yemen's Saleh blocks transition plan

After nightfall, residents reported heavy shelling that appeared to come from outside the capital Sanaa, targeting residential areas. The crackle of heavy gunfire could be heard in different parts of the city.

In the Arhab region about 20 miles (32 kilometers) northwest of Sanaa, a brigade of Saleh's presidential guard clashed with local tribesmen - an indication the fighting was spreading outside the capital. Six government soldiers were killed and 21 injured in that fight, an army official said, speaking on condition of anonymity under military rules. It was unclear if any tribesmen were killed.

So far, 20 government troops, and 46 tribesmen loyal to Sheik Sadeq al-Ahmar of Yemen's powerful Hashid tribe have been killed - bringing the death toll since Monday to at least 69. Scores more have been injured.

Saleh's statement Wednesday - read by spokesman Ahmed al-Soufi in a meeting with tribal allies - ruled out a voluntary departure and blasted US-backed efforts to negotiate his exit after 32 years of rule.

"I will not leave power and I will not leave Yemen," the statement said. "I don't take orders from outside."

Saleh also threatened that his ouster could turn Yemen into a haven for al-Qaida  - directly touching on US fears that chaos in Yemen could open room for more terrorist footholds. The Yemeni branch of al-Qaida is linked to the attempted Christmas Day 2009 bombing of an airline over Detroit and explosives found in parcels intercepted last year in Dubai and Britain.

"Yemen will not be a failed state. It will not turn to al-Qaida refuge," the statement said. Saleh also said he would work to prevent the recent violence from "dragging the country into a civil war."

President Barack Obama has called on Saleh to transfer power - a change from an administration that once considered the Yemeni ruler a necessary ally against terrorism.

On Wednesday, UN Secretary-General Ban Ki-moon called for an immediate end to the fighting, expressing concern that clashes "might further destabilize the situation," UN spokesman Martin Nesirky said at UN headquarters in New York.

The clashes broke out Monday after Saleh's troops tried to storm the compound of al-Ahmar, who heads Yemen's largest tribe, the Hashid. Hundreds of tribal fighters rushed to the capital's northern Hassaba neighborhood, where clashes erupted with government forces.

Government troops Wednesday shelled the neighborhood around al-Ahmar's house while gunmen in civilian clothes exchanged gunfire and rocket-propelled grenades with tribal fighters.

The battles have ravaged the area, home to government offices and the headquarters of Saleh's ruling party. The tribal fighters have occupied 16 ministries and other government institutions, while Saleh's forces have used the interior ministry as their front-line base.

Some military units also appear to have broken ranks and joined the opposition. One breakaway unit trucked in stones to block streets in attempts to prevent government troops from moving in heavy weapons. Pro-Saleh forces, meanwhile, set up checkpoints in other areas, witnesses said.

Gregory Johnsen, an expert on Yemen at Princeton University, said the current fighting could spread quickly if any of Yemen's other armed groups jump in, especially if the first armored division of Maj. Gen. Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar, a former Saleh confidant who sided with the protesters in March. He is not related to the tribal chief.

"If the first armored division gets involved, then it is no longer just a two-sided fight," he said. "It gets much more complicated and the possibility of escalation across the country goes up significantly."