Saleh hurt in Yemen strikes

YEMENI President Ali Abdullah Saleh suffered minor injuries when opposition tribesmen hammered his palace with rockets yesterday in a major escalation of nearly two weeks of fighting with government forces.

At least four guards were killed and seven top officials wounded in the strike, which hit the presidential compound as officials were praying at a mosque inside.

An official said Saleh suffered light injuries to the neck and was treated in the palace.

Yemeni state TV quickly aired a statement that Saleh was “in good health”, denying a claim on an opposition TV station that the president was killed in the strike.

The most serious injuries were to Nooman Dweid, the governor of the capital, Sanaa, and deputy prime minister Rashad al-Alimi, who is also the president’s top security adviser.

It was the first time that tribal fighters have directly targeted Saleh’s palace in the fighting that has rocked Sanaa since May 23.

The strike came after government forces launched an intense artillery barrage at the homes of two tribal leaders and a top military general who joined the opposition.

The fighting pits Saleh’s troops against tribesmen loyal to Sheikh Sadeq al-Ahmar, head of the Hashid, Yemen’s most powerful tribal confederation, who supports the hundreds of thousands of protestors pressing for Saleh’s ouster.