Bloody confrontations continue in Yemen

Abdul Karim al-Iryani, the Yemeni prime minister, denounced the demonstrations that have taken place in his country since last Friday and described them as being "acts of violence that were not spontaneous but prefabricated with the objective of undermining the country's security and stability."

Iryani defended the economic procedures applied by the Yemen government and described it of being as needed to rescue the national security.

Tensions increased on Wednesday between the Yemeni army and Yemeni tribal elements in Maareb province in the hinterland of Yemen, whereas the opposition said that 13 persons were killed on Tuesday, including 7 soldiers.

Meanwhile, eyewitnesses from the capital Sanaa said that a relative calm prevailed in the city, where the police and violence-fighting units are still deployed in the main points of the city since the fierce demonstrations that took place on Saturday in protest of the decision taken by the government to increase prices of fuels and basic ingredients.

In a statement released on Wednesday, the London-based "opposition national front" stressed that confrontations took place between the army and elements from al-Jadaan tribe, 170 km east of Sanaa and resulted in killing six persons from the tribe, including two women, as well as seven soldiers. A tribal source said that the Yemeni army's chief of staff, Lt. Gen. Abdullah Ali Elewa, and Deputy Minister of the Interior Rashad al-Masri moved to Maareb district to control the situation.

The source added that tensions also prevailed in al-Jawf province northeast of the capital.

Iryani reiterated his government's determination to continue the program of economic and financial reforms provides for lifting subsidiary off basic foodstuffs, and services.