Yemeni troops, police demand bosses’ ouster
SANAA — Yemeni soldiers and policemen staged separate demonstrations yesterday demanding the ouster of top bosses over accusations of corruption.
Hundreds of officers and soldiers at an air base in the capital staged a sit-in, in a se- ries of protests that began on Monday demanding the sacking of air force commander General Mohammed Saleh al Ahmar, half-brother of embattled President Ali Abdullah Saleh.
Protesters demanded an official announcement that Ah- mar has been fired after media reports claiming he had been removed from his post and replaced by retired officer Abdullah al Yadoumi.
After months of protests, the veteran Saleh finally signed with the parliamentary opposition in November a deal for the transfer of power under which he agreed to transfer his powers to his deputy.
Saleh left the country on Sunday after MPS passed a law giving him blanket immunity against prosecution, as protesters remained on the streets demanding that he face trial.
Air force troops in Taez also staged a sit-in in the city centre to demand Ahmar’s ouster and the pull out of Republican Guards forces, led by Saleh’s son Ahmed.
Similar supporting sit-ins were held at the bases of Lahij in the south, and Hadramawt in the southeast, the same sources said.
Police and intelligence officers also gathered in Sanaa calling for the removal of the head of the political police, General Ghaleb al Qamesh, and his aides, over accusations of corruption. — AFP