By Sharon Tibenda

6^th June 2011:

Yemeni protesters celebrating the departure of a despot

Thousands of people in Yemen, including soldiers and policemen, are celebrating the departure of President Ali Abdullah Saleh who has been in power for 33 years.  President Saleh left on Saturday for Saudi Arabia to be treated for injuries he sustained in an attack on his presidential compound last Friday.

Many celebrated in the capital, Sanaa’s University Square; others were on the streets chanting and waving flags.  But explosions and gunfights have also taken place in Sanaa and Taiz in the south. Although Yemen’s Foreign Affairs Ministry maintains that the embattled President will be back, it remains to be seen whether Mr Saleh will actually return to Yemen.

What is beyond doubt is that his departure following weeks of sustained protests leaves him in a much weakened position.  The uprising which started out peacefully took a violent turn two weeks ago and brought Yemen a step closer to a fully blown civil war.

Fighting had already erupted between the Yemeni military and tribal fighters from President Saleh’s rival.  At least five people were killed in a grenade attack at a military compound north of Sanaa.  Four Yemeni soldiers were killed in an attack in the southern city, Taiz – another focus of anti-government protests. One of the attackers also died in the gun battle.

Mr. Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, who was Vice President under President Ali Abdullah Saleh’s regime, has now taken over as Acting President and is now in full control of the armed forces and security services.  He has already held talks with the US ambassador in Yemen; a move that is likely to be interpreted as US support for the handover of power

Acting President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi was also by yesterday scheduled to meet members of the military and Mr Saleh’s sons.  For 33 years, President Saleh has been the great survivor. But everything suggests that his visit to Saudi Arabia for medical treatment will most likely be a one-way trip.

Even if he wanted to return to Yemen, it’s unlikely the Saudis would let him.  In fact, it is quite possible that Saudi Arabia engineered President Saleh’s medical excursion as a way of getting him out of power without too much embarrassment.

As things stand now, President Saleh is likely to be the third Arab leader to be forced out of power by the ‘Arab Spring’ that consigned Ben Ali of Tunisia and Hosni Mubarak of Egypt to the scrapheap of history. END.  Please login to www.ugandacorrespondent.com every Monday to read our top stories and anytime mid-week for our news updates.