Stone-throwing Yemeni protesters clashed with police as they marched toward the presidential palace in the fifth day of demonstrations calling for an end to Ali Abdullah Saleh’s rule.
Almost a thousand protesters were making their way to the palace in Sanaa today when police tried to block them. Groups of demonstrators began hurled stones at police and government supporters. Some were chanting “Hey Saleh go away, our demand is clear.” In the city of Taiz, thousands of anti-government protesters demonstrated after camping in the main square overnight.
Tens of thousands of Yemenis have rallied in recent weeks demanding Saleh’s resignation after 32 years in power. Saleh said on Feb. 2 he won’t seek to extend his term when it expires in 2013 and that his son wouldn’t succeed him as president.
At least 17 people were injured and 165 detained in Sanaa, Xinhua news agency reported yesterday, citing witnesses. Ghazi al-Samee, 31, one of the protesters in Taiz, said eight people were injured yesterday and more than 30 people were arrested.
Yemen’s Joint Meeting Parties, an opposition coalition, has asked Saleh to remove his relatives from security, military and other government posts.
“We have waited a lot for reform but he keeps deceiving us,” Dawood Mujahid, 22, a protester in Sanaa, said today. “The regime should leave.”
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