YEMEN: Demonstrators in Yemen show their support for President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi's latest move to try to unify the country's army

Record ID: 213930

  • Title: YEMEN: Demonstrators in Yemen show their support for President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi's latest move to try to unify the country's army
  • Date: 11th April 2013
  • Summary: SANAA, YEMEN (APRIL 11, 2013) (REUTERS) PROTESTERS MARCH IN SUPPORT OF PRESIDENT ABD-RABBU MANSOUR HADI BANNER READING (Arabic): WE SUPPORT THE RESOLUTIONS TO RESTRUCTURE THE ARMY AND SECURITY FORCES (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) PROTESTER, JAMIL AL-SADAWI, SAYING: "Today we congratulate the revolutionaries and the Yemeni people for the historic resolutions that have united the army and achieved victory for the revolution." VARIOUS CROWDS CHANTING SOLDIERS LINING STREET BARBED WIRED BARRICADES ON STREET (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) PROTESTER, ABDLWAHED OBAD, SAYING: "Yemen today is experiencing an army for the nation, not just for one family. That alone is an extraordinary achievement." VARIOUS OF WOMEN PROTESTING CROWDS CELEBRATE PRESIDENT (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) PROTESTER, SALEH AL-SORIMI, SAYING: "None of the previous resolutions issued by the president has received such a welcome as this resolution has." VARIOUS OF TRAFFIC IN SANAA (SOUNDBITE) (Arabic) POLITICAL ANALYST, ABDULBARI TAHER, SAYING: "This is the most important step after the election of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour. This is a very important step because it opens Yemen to new directions of change. It allows dialogue to mature. It allows the president to build on the resolution. It restructures the army on a new basis, other than tribal, and paves the way for genuine elections to take place." TRAFFIC IN SANAA
  • Embargoed: 26th April 2013 13:00
  • Keywords:
  • Location: Yemen
  • Country: Yemen
  • Topics: Domestic Politics
  • Reuters ID: LVA9YVP9PIMO6LSY01K0WQY798GP
  • Story Text: Hundreds were out on the streets of the Yemeni capital Sanaa on Thursday (April 11) to celebrate after the country's president removed the commander of the elite Republican Guard, a powerful political foe, from the military.
    State television reported Wednesday's (April 10) move it was an an apparent move to unify the divided armed forces under President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi's control.
    The television read out orders by Hadi appointing Brigadier General Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh, who is the son of Hadi's predecessor, former president Ali Abdullah Saleh, as ambassador to the United Arab Emirates.

    "Today we congratulate the revolutionaries and the Yemeni people for the historic resolutions that have united the army and achieved victory for the revolution," said protester Jamil Al-Sadawi.
    Gulf neighbours and Western nations fear the wily leader's continuing influence, not least through his powerful son, could tip a delicate political transition into chaos.
    Dozens of youths gathered outside Hadi's home in the capital Sanaa to show support for the decisions.
    Referring to the stranglehold that Ali Abdullah Saleh had on the army, a protester, Abdlwahed Obad, said "Yemen today is experiencing an army for the nation not just for one family. That alone is an extraordinary achievement."
    Hadi had vowed to unify the army, which is divided between allies and opponents of Ali Abdullah Saleh, who stepped down in a Gulf-brokered deal in 2012 after a year of protests against his rule, but still looms large in Yemen.
    Another protester in Sanaa, Saleh al-Sorimi, said how popular people there felt this move had been by the current president.

    "None of the previous resolutions issued by the president has received such a welcome as this resolution has."
    Political commentator Abdel-Bari Taher said the orders made Hadi the sole decision maker of the army.

    "This is the most important step after the election of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour. This is a very important step because it opens Yemen to new directions of change. It allows dialogue to mature. It allows the president to build on the resolution. It restructures the army on a new basis, other than tribal, and paves the way for genuine elections to take place, he added.
    Restoring stability in Yemen has become a priority for the United States and its Gulf allies, concerned about al Qaeda militants operating in a country that adjoins top oil exporter Saudi Arabia and overlooks major global shipping lanes.
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