Yemeni president calls on Washington to pressure Israel

The Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh on Tuesday called on the US "to pressure Israel so as to halt the war of extermination launched against the Palestinian people."

News reports quoted Saleh in a statement he made on the 11th anniversary of the Yemeni unity as saying that "it is saddening that the International community keeps on silence, unable to take any initiative that helps in pressuring Israel and putting an end to its arrogant and aggressive policy."

The Yemeni president called on the UN Security Council to carry out its assigned duty in ensuring protection for the Palestinian people and to respond to the repeated calls to send UN forces to the occupied Palestinian territories to halt a war of extermination imposed on the Palestinian people.

On Monday, Saleh held talks with the Saudi crown prince Abdullah Bin Abdul Aziz who is taking part in the celebrations on the occasion of the 11st anniversary of the Unity of Yemen.

Talks dealt with current developments in the occupied Palestinian territories.