Yemeni Gov’t in Talks with Revolutionaries

Yemen’s revolutionaries and government officials held talks in an effort to end a standoff in the Arab world’s poorest country.

Jamal Benomar, the UN special envoy to Yemen, said on Friday that the two sides agreed to meet again in the capital Sana’a, with him in attendance, press tv reported.

Benomar has been in the capital since Thursday as part of efforts to clinch a deal between the two sides.

Meanwhile, another anti-government protest was held in Sana’a.

Sources said on Thursday that a potential deal had been reached between the sides late on Wednesday.

The agreement was said to stipulate that “a new prime minister will be named within 48 hours” and fuel prices will be lowered.

Five Yemeni were shot dead and several others wounded as soldiers opened fire on protesters as part of the government’s plan to suppress the popular uprisings last week.

Police used tear gas and water cannon against the protesters, who were camped along the road near the interior ministry.

The latest round of fighting comes as hundreds of thousands of Yemeni people from various tribes and faiths have been staging massive protests in Sanaa for the last several weeks to demand the dismissal of the government and the reversal of an earlier government decision to slash fuel subsidies.

They rejected Mansour Hadi’s initiative to form a new government and partially reduce fuel prices.

The protesters said they will continue their mass rallies until all their demands are met.

The Yemeni army and security forces have on numerous occasions used force against the protests. But the crackdown has so far failed to stop the protests.

The Houthi movement that played a key role in the popular uprising that forced former dictator Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down in 2012 is now a part of the comprehensively popular protests.