Reuters

SANAA — Yemeni tribesmen said they wrested a military compound from elite troops loyal to President Ali Abdullah Saleh outside the capital Sanaa yesterday as increased fighting threatened to tip the country into civil war. Yemeni fighter jets could be heard breaking the sound barrier as they swooped over the capital, the scene of fighting between forces loyal to Saleh and the rival Hashed tribe led by Sadeq al Ahmar, close to the opposition party Islah.

Tribes outside the capital said they were also fighting government troops at two other military bases. In Sanaa, tens of thousands of people gathered after Friday prayers for what they said would be a “Friday of Peaceful Revolution” against Saleh, releasing white doves and carrying the coffins of about 30 people killed in clashes last week.

But the turnout for the rally was less than previous weeks with many people fleeing Sanaa and the government closing roads around the capital to keep out tribes trying to reinforce the Ahmars.

Machine-gun fire rattled across Sanaa and sporadic explosions were heard near a protest site where thousands of people demanding Saleh’s departure are still camped.

Fighting in Sanaa eased off later yesterday after mediation efforts under which the Al Ahmar tribe evacuated government ministry buildings they had grabbed during clashes last week in return for a ceasefire and troops pulling out from their area.

“We are now in mediation and there has been a ceasefire between the two sides … But if Ali Abdullah Saleh returned (to fighting) then we are ready. We are steadfast and victorious,” Sadeq al Ahmar told protesters in “Change Square”.

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By Maggie Michael
The Associated Press | The Canadian Press

CAIRO – Thousands of protesters returned to downtown Cairo’s Tahrir Square Friday for what they called a “second revolution,” calling for Egypt’s military rulers to speed up the pace of democratic reforms in a country that is still charting its political future.

Protesters carried banners reading the “Egyptian revolution is not over” and chanted the slogan.

Egyptian protesters want end to sectarian tension. Image: GETTY.

Christians and Muslims took turns praying in Tahrir Square, as they did in the protests that forced the ouster of former President Hosni Mubarak in February. Sectarian clashes have turned deadly since the revolution.

The ruling military warned that “dubious” elements may try to cause chaos during Friday’s protests, and said it would stay clear of the protest area to avoid any friction.

Mohamed ElBaradei, the Egyptian Nobel Peace Prize winner and a reform leader, said that he was “seriously concerned about the absence of security forces.”

The military’s leadership of the country’s democratic transition has left many protesters dissatisfied.

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