SANA, Yemen — Tribesmen loyal to Yemen’s embattled president clashed Tuesday with soldiers whose commander has sided with the opposition, and the fighting in a suburb of the capital Sana left three tribesmen dead, according to tribal elders and military officials.
It was the latest violence in weeks of turmoil in Yemen, where President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s military and police forces have cracked down on protesters demanding that he step down after 32 years in power.
The clash erupted as a convoy of about 30 cars with armed tribesmen from Saleh’s Sanhan tribe arrived at the headquarters of the 1st Armored Division in western Sana to meet with its commander, fellow tribesman Maj. Gen. Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar, who had earlier joined the opposition. The powerful Sanhan tribe is split between those remaining loyal to Saleh and those who have crossed over to the opposition.
European Union foreign-policy chief Catherine Ashton expressed grave concern for “the reports of violent repression, including live ammunition, against demonstrators.” In a statement Tuesday, she said she contacted Saleh last week to call for an orderly handover.
“Transition must begin now,” she said.
Saleh has clung to power, saying Yemen will sink into chaos if he goes and warning of al-Qaeda’s growing influence.
Protesters and opposition leaders accuse Saleh of provoking violence and instability throughout the country to give his Western allies a taste of what a nightmare it might be without his iron-fisted rule.
