Yemeni president cancels visit to Egypt because of Palestinian developments

The Yemeni President Ali Abdullah saleh on Friday canceled an expected visit to Egypt and returned back to Sanaa to follow up "developments in Ramullah," the West Bank closely, according to s source close to the Yemeni Presidency.

The Yemeni official, who asked not to be identified said that President Saleh returned back to Yemen at dawn after he had decided to cancel his visit to Sharm al-Sheikh.

The Yemeni official added that Saleh would have taken part in Sharm al-Sheikh summit with Egypt's President Hosni Mubarak and the King of Bahrain Sheikh Hamad Bin Issa al-Khaleifa, currently in Egypt. He said that the Yemeni President preferred "to return back to Sanaa to follow up events in Ramullah closely."

The Yemeni President urged the Arab and Islamic states on Friday to give immediate support for the Palestinians. President Saleh added in statements to the Arabs and Muslims to "provide immediate and effective backing to the Palestinians in order to enable them maintain resistance and steadfastness before the aggressions conducted against them and their leadership."