Transition & Reform in Yemen

Yemeni President The United States has advised Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh not to return home from Saudi Arabia, a western diplomat said yesterday."His return would make the situation worse." Mr Saleh was discharged on Sunday from the Riyadh hospital, where he had been receiving treatment for burns and other injuries sustained in a bomb attack that took place on the 3rd of June at the mosque in the presidential compound.
His office in Yemen said on Tuesday he would return to the country "after he finishes his recovery period".
Mr Saleh's critics and rivals have also urged the country to move on without him. There have been six months of often violent street protests calling for his removal, and many have warned that Yemen could erupt in civil war if he returns.
The U.S., Gulf Arab nations and Yemeni opposition groups have called on Saleh to transfer power to Vice President Abed Rabbo Mansur Hadi. Under the GCC plan, Saleh, who has ruled Yemen for 32 years, would step down within 30 days of signing the deal and be guaranteed immunity from future prosecutions. He has refused to sign it.
Mr Saleh has on three occasions announced he was ready to accept a Gulf Cooperation Council proposal in which he would step down in exchange for immunity from prosecution, but each time he has backed out of the deal.
On Monday, Mark Toner, the US State Department spokesman, urged an immediate transfer of power to Mr Hadi, the acting head of state. "All we can do is continue to press our belief that this transition needs to happen immediately and cannot wait until a decision is made about his future," Mr Toner said.
"So, what we're working on, through our embassy and ambassador, is trying to move the process forward now, rather than wait." Gerald Feierstein, the US ambassador to Yemen, echoed that sentiment the next day. The UN Security Council said it is "deeply concerned at the worsening security situation, including the threat from Al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula".
Tarik al-Shami, spokesman of the ruling party, dismissed reports that there is pressure on Saleh not to return home and said a power transfer will take place only through elections.
"We need to have a clear mechanism to agree upon on how to implement the GCC plan so that we do not go through a new crisis," al-Shami said by phone today.
Yemen's main opposition coalition, known as the Joint Meeting Parties, is preparing a meeting for Aug. 17 where about 700 people representing opposition groups and protesters will establish a "national council" that will unite the demands of anti-government forces, said Mohammed al-Sabri, a JMP leader.
Mr. Feierstein said he had met Mr Hadi about 13 times since June 3 to discuss the political standoff and that "Washington has confidence in the abilities of the vice president Hadi who was assigned as acting president following the departure of Saleh, has gained Washington's full confidence, not only to accomplish the transition of power, but also to lead Yemen during the transition phase," he said.
The Security Council urged all sides to allow humanitarian access to Yemen and warned that there were increasingly severe shortages of basic supplies and growing damage to key infrastructure. The body called on all parties to "move forward urgently an inclusive, orderly and Yemeni-led process of political transition".