Mass Protests in Yemen over Resigning President's Immunity

Yemen's outgoing President Ali Abdullah Saleh must be held accountable for his rule, according to thousands of protesters. Photo by pisqa.com

Mass protests occurred in Yemen Sunday against a deal brokered by Persian Gulf nations that grants Yemen's president immunity from prosecution, witnesses said.

Thousands of protesters gathered in the capital Sanaa alone, CNN reported.

On Saturday, Yemeni officials said the country's president, Ali Abdullah Saleh, President of Yemen for more than 30 years, had accepted a deal brokered by the Gulf Cooperation Council under which he would step down.

Both Saleh and the Yemeni opposition have agreed to the deal in principle. Saleh has yet to sign the agreement, which stipulates he leave office within 30 days and provides complete immunity for him and those who served in his regime.

The agreement also calls for a unity government to be formed within seven days.

Yaseen Noman, president of Yemen's largest opposition group, the Joint Meeting Parties (JMP) bloc, told journalists Saturday that members accepted the GCC proposal but had two comments - they did not want to participate in a unified government, and they cannot force protesters to go home, as cited by CNN.

The Organizing Committee of the Youth Revolution denounced the proposal in a written statement Sunday.

"We the youth of revolution reject any proposal that does not hold Saleh accountable for the killing over 140 revolution protesters," the committee said.

The group also said it rejected the GCC proposal because it did not call for an immediate ouster of Saleh. The committee also said the GCC effort came to save the regime -- not to help the people.

Mohammed Albasha, spokesman for the Yemeni Embassy in Washington, said the opposition has to accept the final deal before Saleh will sign.

According to Yemeni government spokesman Abdu Ganadi, the ruling party said the opposition must accept the proposal completely or reject it -- partial agreements will not be accepted.

Violent anti-government demonstrations have erupted for many weeks across Yemen and the chorus calling for Saleh's ouster has grown louder.

Saleh has been in power since 1978 and served as a staunch U.S. ally in the fight against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula. He has argued he should stay in power because he is best equipped to fight Islamic militants.

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