Yemeni president welcomes Gulf plan, vowing to face opposition's challenge

Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh delivers a speech to his supporters during a rally in Sanaa, Yemen, April 22, 2011. Saleh said on Friday that he will face the challenge of opposition, and he welcomed the initiative with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) foreign ministers. Photo:Xinhua

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh on Friday told tens of thousands of his supporters that he will face the challenge of opposition, and he welcomed the initiative of the Gulf foreign ministers.

"We welcome the initiative with Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) foreign ministers and we will deal with it positively in the framework of the Yemeni constitution," Saleh told the crowds who gathered to support him in downtown of Sanaa. He also called for his supporters to be "steadfast in front of the apostate elements and cowards."

"We will face the challenge of the opposition and we are keen of not shedding blood and we are keen of not using the firearms," said Saleh, who is facing three-month-old street protests demanding immediate end to his 33-year rule.

"We reject coups or any act harming the gains of our revolutions and unity," he added.

Saleh's speech came a day after the visiting GCC Secretary- General Abdullatif bin Rashid al-Zayani submitted a plan to him and the opposition based on the GCC meetings in Riyadh and Abu Dhabi.

The spokesman of Saleh's ruling General people's Congress (GPC) Tarik al-Shami told Xinhua on Friday that "the ruling party welcomed the amended GCC-mediated proposal of transferring power," saying "they will deal with it positively."

"But we reject any coup by the extremist minority of the opposition Joint Meeting Parties (JMP)," he said.

Another official of GPC told Xinhua on condition of anonymity on Friday that "the opposition leaders are seeking to topple the constitutional rights of President Saleh through the amended GCC- mediated initiative and this is not acceptable." On Thursday's evening, a senior government official told Xinhua that President Saleh accepted the GCC initiative, which stipulated him to announce resignation in 30 days, but his ruling party insisted to keep Saleh as "honorary president" for five months after he transferred power.

"The plan proposed Saleh to form a joint national government from all political parties, which is headed by the opposition Joint Meeting parties (JMP), then Saleh should move power to his deputy in exchange for immunity for him and his family, which is guaranteed by a law to be approved by parliament and to end opposition-backed street protests and military rebellion," he said.