Yemen generals back protestors

Three Yemeni army commanders have defected to the opposition, calling for an end to President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s rule, as army tanks and armoured vehicles deployed in support of thousands protesting in the capital.

It appeared Mr Saleh’s support was eroding from every power base in the nation - his own tribe called on him to step down, he fired his entire cabinet ahead of what one government official said was a planned mass resignation, and his ambassador to the UN and human rights minister quit.

All three officers who defected today belong to Mr Saleh’s Hashid tribe. A Hashid leader said the tribe, eager to keep the president’s job for one of its own, was rallying behind one of the men, Maj. Gen. Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar, as a possible replacement.

Gen. Al-Ahmar, the most senior of the three officers, is a long-time confidant of Saleh and commander of the army’s powerful 1st Armoured Division. Units from it deployed in a major square in Sanaa where protesters have been camping out to call for Mr Saleh to step down.

His crackdown on a month-long uprising against his rule has grown increasingly violent – suggesting he is becoming more fearful that the unprecedented street protests could unravel his three-decade grip on power.

He also tried unsuccessfully to calm the protest by pulling back riot police.

The two other officers are Mohammed Ali Mohsen and Hameed al-Qusaibi, who both have the rank of brigadier.

Yemen’s ambassadors to Jordan, Syria and parliament’s deputy speaker also announced they were supporting the opposition, further undermining Mr Saleh’s authority.

News of the defections came one day after crowds flooded cities and towns across Yemen to mourn dozens of protesters killed on Friday when security forces opened fire from rooftops on a demonstration in Sanaa.