Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has shot down more than one power transfer deal over the past year, with several of the deals vetoed at the tail end over some minor dispute on the language of deals. The most recent deal was supposed to be a done deal, however, but will it last?
Maybe not, warn members of the opposition, saying that Saleh is using the nation’s military, which is still dominated by a number of his relatives, to launch attacks on protesters and delay the implementation of a deal that would have him removed, permanently, from power.
Saleh signed the deal formally, over a month ago, but the crackdowns on demonstrators have continued, with threats from his replacement Major General Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to cancel the deal if people don’t stop public protests against Saleh.
Which probably isn’t a major blow to the protesters at any rate, since the deal to install the US-backed general as the new ruler in a single-candidate election wasn’t playing particularly well with pro-democracy activists. Still, many are hoping for the end to Saleh’s rule, and soon.