SANAA// Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh moved a step closer to stepping down after he agreed in principle to a UN plan that would transfer power to his deputy, the European Union ambassador to Yemen was quoted by the state news agency, Saba, as saying.
Mr Saleh has weathered a nine-month uprising against his power, agreeing three times to sign a Gulf Cooperation Council proposal on power transition, only to pull out at the last minute. The UN's plan for Yemen provides a timetable for implementing each step of the GCC plan.
"We are convinced that we are on the verge of reaching an agreement soon and above all else the matter calls for political commitment. We hope that Eid Al Adha will be an occasion to announce to Yemen - and the world - that Yemen has passed towards a new stage," Michele Cervone d'Urso was quoted by Saba as saying on Tuesday.
Mr d'Urso said the international community was aware that there was a crisis in Yemen and would hold any party accountable for failing to reach a political solution.
The Yemeni government informed the US, EU and Gulf diplomats this week that Mr Saleh had agreed to transfer his power to his deputy, Abdurabu Mansur Hadi, who would sign the GCC deal. The plan provides Mr Saleh, his family and close advisers immunity from prosecution.
The US and EU ambassadors met opposition leaders on Monday and informed them Mr Saleh had agreed to the transition plan, according to Mohammed Al Sabri, a leader in the Joint Meeting Parties, the main opposition coalition.
"We told the western diplomats that this is not the first time we have heard Saleh say this. We are sceptical about Saleh's intention ... what is happening on the ground is different. But, the diplomats said if the regime does not respect its commitment, the UN Security Council will take resolutions that he cannot confront," Mr Al Sabri said yesterday. "Nobody is ready to accept more manoeuvring and lies.
Opposition leaders, who are in Kuwait to drum up support for their movement, treated the development with caution. "We heard good things from the diplomats, but actions speak louder than words. We are not optimistic right now - but if the Gulf initiative is signed we will be more optimistic," said Houriya Mashhur, with the National Council for the Peaceful Revolution Forces, an umbrella for opposition groups.
In Yemen, violence resumed after a brief period of relative calm. At least 19 people were killed and 49 were wounded in a 24-hour period in fighting between Mr Saleh's forces and armed tribesmen supporting the uprising in Taiz and Sanaa.
Medics and activists said that six civilians, including a 13-year old boy, and two gunmen, were killed yesterday in clashes and government shelling in Taiz.
Hisham Al Jaradi, a protest activist, said Mr Saleh's forces fired mortar rounds and used tanks indiscriminately in several highly populated neighbourhoods after the gunmen had taken over a government building in the city centre. He added that military aircraft flew low over the city, scaring the residents.
The defence ministry said security forces had to respond after the opposition took over some government buildings. A security official in Taiz said five soldiers were killed and more than 25 were wounded in the clashes.
Three people were also killed in clashes between tribesmen and Mr Saleh's forces in the district of Arhab in north Sanaa as government forces tried to move into the villages late on Tuesday, witnesses said.
More than 35 people have been killed in Yemen since the UN Security Council resolution on October 21 called for Mr Saleh to immediately accept the GCC deal.
* With additional reporting by Agence France-Presse, Associated Press and Reuters
