"We renew our call for the Joint Meeting Parties to sit down at the table of dialogue and to get away from violence," Saleh told his supporters gathered near the presidential office in the capital Sanaa on Tuesday, according to Saba.
The crowds were from Saleh`s tribe, Sanhan, who then went to mediate with Saleh`s half-brother General Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar who defected along with other scores of military officers after the shootings of March 18 that left 52 protesters dead.
Saba said the tribal delegation went to the office of Commander al-Ahmar after their meeting with President Saleh to try to convince al-Ahmar to revise his defection`s decision and go back to support Saleh, but the bodyguards and soldiers of al-Ahmar opened fire on them.
It said at least three of the tribal delegations were killed and other 56 were wounded, four of them in critical conditions.
Saleh`s call came a day after the foreign ministers of the Arab Gulf countries invited Saleh and his opponents for a conciliation talks in Riyadh. The Yemeni government accepted on Tuesday the invitation of the Arab Gulf`s foreign ministers, according to Saba.
Date of the planned Riyadh`s conciliation meeting has not been announced.
Clashes between police-backed government supporters and anti- government protesters reportedly continued on Tuesday in provinces of Al-Hodayda, Taiz, Al-Bayda, Aden, Abyan, Ibb and Hadramout.
Yemen has witnessed weeks-long anti-government protests demanding an immediate end to the 33-year rule of President Saleh.
The political crisis recently resulted in deterioration of security, stability after the government pulled the police out from some towns of major provinces.(*)
Editor: Jafar M Sidik
Copyright © ANTARA 2011
