At least seven people died Wednesday in anti-government clashes in Yemen, the AFP reported.
The AFP reported that four policemen and one soldier were killed in Sanaa, where tension remained high near the encampment of a defected army
general, Ali Mohsen, whose forces are protecting thousands of anti-government
protesters in their tent camp near Sanaa University.
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YemenClashes in south Yemen, four woundedA source close to Ali Mohsen's forces toward Reuters that troops loyal to President Ali Abdullah Saleh had
fired rocket-propelled grenades and assault rifles at the encampment after rebels set up a checkpoint on a road leading to the protest zone.
Mohsen's forces returned fire and battled the pro-government forces for
an hour before Saleh's forces retreated, leaving the checkpoint intact,
the source close to Mohsen said. In a separate
incident in the southern city of Aden, security forces shot dead two
anti-government protesters and wounded four more. Protesters had been
attempting to erect roadblocks as part of a general strike they vow to
maintain until the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
Gulf Arab foreign ministers have said they would invite Saleh and his
opponents to mediation talks on a transfer of power for the Arabian
Peninsula state to end a standoff after two months of street protests.
The opposition initially rejected the plan, but they met ambassadors of
Saudi Arabia, Kuwait and Oman on Tuesday to seek clarification on the
Gulf mediators' understanding of a proposed "transfer of power".
Opposition sources said they were expecting an answer from the Gulf on
Wednesday on the timeframe and details of the plan, and could respond
immediately. An opposition source has said talks could start as early as
Saturday in Riyadh.
The situation could escalate into more violence in the heavily armed but
impoverished Arabian Peninsula state, where half the 23 million people
own a gun.
Further south, at least one person was killed in the southern port town
of Aden when police fired shots to stop protesters marching from one
district of Aden to another and who hurled rocks at police as they tried
to clear makeshift roadblocks, residents said.
Sporadic gunfire continued across the city and security forces, some in
armored vehicles and others with water cannon, were deployed
throughout..