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AP/ The Hindu.
An anti-government protester is thrown in to the air by others while celebrating President Ali Abdullah Saleh's departure to Saudi Arabia, in Sanaa, Yemen, on Sunday Photo: AP.
Protesters danced, sang and slaughtered cows in the central square of Yemen’s capital on Sunday to celebrate the departure of the country’s authoritarian leader for medical treatment in Saudi Arabia after he was wounded in a rocket attack on his compound.
Saudi-owned television network Al-Arabiya reported President Ali Abdullah Saleh was undergoing surgery, but did not say for what. One of Saleh’s allies said the president, in his late 60s, was hit by jagged pieces of wood that splintered from the mosque pulpit when his compound was hit by a rocket on Friday.
There was no official announcement on who was acting as head of state. But under Yemen’s constitution, the vice president takes over for up to 60 days when the head of state is absent. Vice President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi met Sunday with U.S. Ambassador Gerald Michael Feierstein, a strong indication that he is in charge.
Mr. Saleh’s absence raised the spectre of an even more violent power struggle between the armed tribesmen who have turned against him and loyalist military forces. Street battles between the sides have already pushed the more than three-month political crisis to the brink of civil war over this deeply impoverished and unstable corner of the Arabian Peninsula.
But for one day at least, the capital was celebrating. Protesters thronged Sanaa’s Change Square, the epicentre of the nationwide protest movement since mid-February calling for Mr. Saleh to step down immediately. Some uniformed soldiers joined those dancing and singing patriotic songs and were hoisted on the shoulders of the crowd. Many in the jubilant crowd waved Yemeni flags, joyfully whistling and flashing the “V” for victory signs.
Hope this bonhomie lasts!
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