Yemeni tribesmen said they wrested a military compound from elite troops loyal to President Ali Abdullah Saleh outside the capital Sanaa on Friday as increased fighting threatened to tip the country into civil war.
Yemeni fighter jets could be heard breaking the sound barrier as they swooped over the capital, the scene of fighting between forces loyal to Saleh and the rival Hashed tribe led by Sadeq al-Ahmar, close to the Islamist opposition party Islah. Tribes outside the capital said they were also fighting government troops at two other military bases.
In Sanaa, tens of thousands of people gathered after Friday prayers for what they said would be a “Friday of Peaceful Revolution” against Saleh, releasing white doves and carrying the coffins of about 30 people killed in clashes this week.
But the turnout for the rally, inspired by the Egyptian and Tunisian revolutions, was less than previous weeks with many people fleeing Sanaa and the government closing roads around the capital to keep out tribes trying to reinforce the Ahmars.
Machinegun fire rattled across Sanaa and sporadic explosions were heard near a protest site where thousands of people demanding Saleh’s departure are still camped. Fighting in Sanaa eased off later on Friday after mediation efforts under which the al-Ahmar tribe evacuated government ministry buildings they had grabbed during clashes this week in return for a ceasefire and troops pulling out from their area.
“We are now in mediation and there has been a ceasefire between the two sides … But if Ali Abdullah Saleh returned (to fighting) then we are ready. We are steadfast and victorious,” Sadeq al-Ahmar told protesters in “Change Square”.
“We wanted it (revolution) to be peaceful but Saleh, his sons and his clique wanted war. We will not leave them the opportunity to turn it into a civil war. There is mediation going on now,” Ahmar told Reuters.
The week-long battles, the worst since unrest erupted in January, have enabled Saleh to grab back the initiative, overshadowing the protest movement with the threat of civil war. But many protesters remained determined to see him out.
“We are here to renew our resolve for a peaceful revolution. We reject violence or being dragged into civil war,”said Yahya Abdulla at the anti-Saleh protest camp, where armed vehicles have been deployed to protect those praying.
A few kilometres (miles) away, government loyalists staged their own rally, waving Yemeni flags and pictures of Saleh, who has ruled the Arabian Peninsula state for nearly 33 years. “By God, you won’t leave!” some red banners read.
There are increasing worries that Yemen, already a safe haven for al Qaeda and on the verge of financial ruin, could deteriorate into a failed state that would erode regional security and pose a serious risk to its neighbour Saudi Arabia, the world’s No. 1 oil exporter.
The United States and Saudi Arabia, both targets of foiled attacks by a wing of al Qaeda based in Yemen, are concerned that any spread of anarchy could embolden the global militant group.
Tribal leader Sheikh Hamid Asim told Reuters fighters killed the commander of the military compound and a separate tribal source said the Yemeni air force dropped bombs to prevent the tribesmen from seizing an arms cache at the site.
Further bombing sorties by the air force could be heard near Sanaa during the course of the day. If confirmed, the Republican Guard’s loss of a military base to tribesmen armed with machine guns and rocket-propelled grenades would be an embarrassing setback for Saleh, whose security forces have been drawn into pitched street fighting in the capital this week that has killed nearly 100 people.
