- Title: YEMEN: Thousands of supporters of President Ali Abdullah Saleh rally in Sanaa
- Date: 12th March 2011
- Summary: SANAA, YEMEN (MARCH 11, 2011) (REUTERS) VARIOUS OF PRO-GOVERNMENT RALLY VARIOUS OF PRO-GOVERNMENT PROTESTERS HOLDING BANNERS (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) PRO-GOVERNMENT PROTESTER HAMMOD AL NAQEEB SAYING; "President Ali Abdullah Saleh is a legitimate president and he treats his friends the same as his enemies because of his legitimacy. So the stubbornness of the opposition parties and their refusal of logical language is a call for chaos and sedition. We call them, and we call on them again, because we are your brothers and we are calling on you to change your minds and be rational, especially because our president has offered them one concession after the other." VARIOUS OF GOVERNMENT SUPPORTERS SHOUTING SLOGANS
- Embargoed: 27th March 2011 13:00
- Keywords: Yemdunc
- Location: Yemen
- Country: Yemen
- Topics: Domestic Politics
- Reuters ID: LVA1YT2EX451R04TL6TCV5TZUWGA
- Story Text: Tens of thousands of supporters of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh rallied in Sanaa on Friday (March 11), as protests by his opponents drew record crowds to the capital.
A wave of unrest, inspired partly by popular revolts in Egypt and Tunisia, has weakened Saleh's 32-year grip on his impoverished nation, a neighbour of oil giant Saudi Arabia and home to an agile and ambitious regional al Qaeda wing.
Yemenis flooded streets and alleys around Sanaa University in the biggest protest to hit the capital since demonstrations began in January.
The protesters, marking what they called the "Friday of no return", gave short shrift to Saleh's offer on Thursday of a new constitution to be voted on this year and electoral reforms.
But in Saleh loyalists crammed into Sanaa's Tahrir Square held up pictures of the veteran leader and chanted "Yes to dialogue. No to chaos."
"President Ali Abdullah Saleh is a legitimate president and he treats his friends the same as his enemies because of his legitimacy. So the stubbornness of the opposition parties and their refusal of logical language is a call for chaos and sedition," said government supporter Hammod Al Naqeeb.
"We call them, and we call on them again, because we are your brothers and we are calling on you to change your minds and be rational, especially because our president has offered them one concession after the other."
Saleh's opponents, however, want an end to his autocratic rule, in which his relatives and allies hold key posts. They are also frustrated with rampant corruption and soaring unemployment.
The United States fears that Saleh's overthrow might lead to a power vacuum that would be exploited by Islamist militants in the Arabian Peninsula state, from which al Qaeda has launched attacks on Western and Saudi targets. - Copyright Holder: REUTERS
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