Yemen’s embattled President Ali Abdullah Saleh has vowed he would not step down or allow his impoverished nation to become a “failed state” even as urban combat between government troops and armed tribesmen engulfed parts of the capital.
Both sides raised the specter of civil war as the three-day death toll from fighting rose to at least 69 on Wednesday. The latest violence comes just days after a failed Arab mediation effort to end the three-month uprising and ease Saleh from power.
In the Arhab region about 32 kilometres northwest of Sanaa, a brigade of Saleh’s presidential guard clashed with local tribesmen an indication the fighting was spreading outside the capital. Six soldiers were killed.
Russia recognises anti-Gaddafi council
Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said it recognises anti-Gaddafi Transitional National Council as a legitimate negotiator in resolving the Libya crisis and deciding the future of the country.