SANA, Yemen — Jubilant crowds on Sunday celebrated the news that Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh had arrived in Saudi Arabia for medical treatment after an attack Friday on his presidential compound.
While Yemeni Vice President Abed Rabbo Mansur Hadi assumed the powers of the presidency, the situation remained unclear, as officials asserted that Saleh would return to Yemen and remain president.
Saleh left for Saudi Arabia late Saturday night. He is thought to have suffered severe burns and shrapnel wounds to his chest. He is expected to remain in Saudi Arabia for two weeks of recovery.
By nightfall Sunday, crowds had massed in Sana’s “Change Square,” where anti-government demonstrators have held a sit-in for the past four months. In the eyes of most demonstrators, there was little ambiguity over Saleh’s fate. After evening prayers, the crowds broke out into chants, saying, “The people have finished; the regime has fallen.”
State media denied reports that Saleh traveled to Saudi Arabia with numerous members of his family. It was widely agreed that many of Saleh’s powerful relatives, including his son, Ahmed Ali, who leads the elite Republican Guard, remained in the country, fueling fears that Saleh could try to resume power after his recovery.
“For him to attempt to return to power would be absurd,” said Abdul Ghani al-Iryani, a Yemeni political analyst and co-founder of the Democratic Awakening Movement. Al-Iryani said the formation of a unity government incorporating members of the opposition was likely in the next two weeks.
Vice President Joe Biden reportedly called Hadi on Sunday morning, after Gerald Feierstein, the U.S. ambassador to Yemen, met with the acting president Saturday afternoon. Those actions were interpreted as an American endorsement of the transfer of power.
Hadi is widely seen as a weak figure, suitable for a temporary period in power but unlikely to hold it for long. According to al-Iryani, a unity government was likely to hold provisional elections in 60 days. The winners would be expected to oversee the rewriting of the Yemeni constitution, leading to a transition to a parliamentary system.
A strong parliamentary system would allow more regional representation and political accountability, addressing concerns from many disaffected Yemenis, who argue that Yemenis outside the nation’s geographical power base have been marginalized since the nation’s unification.
Even as Yemenis celebrated, sporadic shelling occurred in the Hasaba district of the capital, Sana. Still, while some voiced fear that the nation could continue to spiral out of control, many Yemenis shared al-Iryani’s optimism.
“We are very hopeful,” said Mohamed al Muwadda, an engineer who supports the democracy movement. “Of course, there are likely to be a few problems, but I think that we are on our way to a better future.”
