Yemenis Keep Pressure on U.S.-Backed Leader

SANAA, Yemen - More than 1,000 people protested in Yemen for a fourth straight day Monday, demanding political reforms and the ouster of the U.S.-allied president in demonstrations inspired by the upheaval in Egypt.

University students, rights activists and lawmakers marched Monday in the capital, Sanaa. Lawyers in black robes, led by their union chief, joined the demonstrators shouting slogans against the security forces and "the people want the regime to step down," a slogan mirroring those used in Egypt and Tunisia.

"A revolution of free opinion .. A revolution of freedom .. We who decide," shouted the protesters.

A counter-demonstration by dozens of supporters holding up pictures of President Ali Abdullah Saleh confronted the protesters, shouting slogans against terrorism and supporting the government's call for dialogue.

Police separated the two groups before the protesters marched toward the city center shouting, "Leave, Saleh."

Lawyer Hassan al-Dola said the anti-government protest was against "the widespread corruption and against the security apparatus that terrified the people."

"We will continue our protests until the regime falls," independent lawmaker Ahmed Hashid said.

Similar demonstrations took place in Aden and Taaz shouting, "Saleh, you are good in words but not in rule."

On Sunday, police armed with sticks and daggers on Sunday beat back thousands of protesters marching through the Sanaa. The protests have mushroomed since crowds gathered Friday to celebrate the ouster of Egyptian President Hosni Mubarak after an 18-day revolt fueled by similar grievances. Yemen is one of several countries in the Middle East feeling the aftershocks of pro-reform uprisings in Egypt and Tunisia.

Human Rights Watch said police on Sunday used electroshock tasers and batons to disperse protesters.

HRW called upon the Yemeni authorities to abide by the United Nations Basic Principles on the Use of Force and Firearms by Law Enforcement Officials and that the Yemeni government has an obligation to recognize and protect everyone's right to peaceful assembly and free expression.

There were several checkpoints at streets leading to the presidential palace and some were blocked with barbed wire.

Sanaa state television said Sunday that because of the current situation in the region, Saleh, after he met with the U.S. ambassador to Yemen, canceled his visit to the United States scheduled for the end of this month.

Meanwhile, the U.S. plans to launch a new training program for the Yemeni Military to combat AQAP, a terror group U.S. officials warn is the most immediate and serious threat to national security. A senior defense official expects the program will cost $75 million and will train insurgency groups to seek out terrorists in small tribal regions.

U.S. officials say that at this point, the ongoing protests do not deter them from funding the program.