President-for-Life Ali Abdullah Saleh... Saleh initially took power as a strongman of North Yemen in 1977, when disco was in flower, after serving as a lieutenant colonel in the army. He had been part of the conspiracy that bumped off his predecessor, Ibrahim al-Hamdi, in the usual tiresome military coup, and he has maintained power by keeping Yemen's many tribes fighting with each other, rather than uniting to string him up. ...
streamed Saturday into the capital's Sabeen Parade Zone, near his heavily fortified palace, to show their support for the beleaguered leader.
The crowds carried banners urging Saleh not to bow to opposition demands for his resignation. Boosted by the huge crowd of supporters, Saleh responded: "I swear to you that I will sacrifice my blood and soul and everything precious for the sake of this great people."
Saleh also told the opposition that he wouldn't respond to their "foul language." "I hope their speeches to be reasonable and that they would avoid using irresponsible language."
The official media claimed that half the country's population (approximately 10 million souls) went to the streets of the republic in support of Saleh's regime. Saleh's supporters dubbed the day the "Friday of Brotherhood."
The president's opponents staged an equally impressive protest when thousands of protesters converged on Change Square, the epicenter of the anti-Saleh protests. They called their protests "Friday of Removal."
The anti-government sit-in has been spared attacks since the defected army Gen. Ali Mohsen Al-Ahmer vowed to protect the protesters. The opposition media put the number of protesters across the country at six million.
Yemen has been rattled by a wave of protests inspired by two successful uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia. The president has offered many concessions since the beginning of the turmoil in early February, including a pledge not to stand for another term. His latest offer was to leave office by the end of this year.
Saleh's regime was jolted recently by the defection of senior army generals. Also, some members of his ruling party and many tribal leaders have thrown their lot with the opposition.
Fearing instability, many countries have asked their citizens to take precautions or leave Yemen.
The British Foreign Office has urged all British nationals to leave Yemen, while the US Embassy called on Americans in Sanaa to restrict their movements.