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Witnesses: More Than 30 Protesters Wounded in Yemen


A police trooper mans a machine gun atop an armored personnel carrier near the Presidential Palace in Sana'a, Syria, May 13, 2011
A police trooper mans a machine gun atop an armored personnel carrier near the Presidential Palace in Sana'a, Syria, May 13, 2011

Yemeni security forces have opened fire on protesters calling for President Ali Abdullah Saleh to step down, wounding more than 30 people.

Medics and witnesses say the violence took place Saturday in the southern city of Taiz.

Also Saturday, the head of the six-nation Gulf Cooperation Council, Abdullatif al-Zayani, arrived in Yemen's capital, Sana'a, to try to revive a Gulf-brokered plan that calls for Mr. Saleh to resign, in exchange for immunity from prosecution.

Mr. Saleh has refused to sign the plan.

On Friday, Mr. Saleh told supporters in Sana'a he has no immediate plans of leaving his post. He spoke as thousands of anti-government activists gathered in the capital and elsewhere in Yemen demanding his resignation.

Witnesses say at least three people were killed Friday after security forces opened fire on demonstrators.

The plan brokered by the Gulf Cooperation Council calls for Mr. Saleh to transfer power to a deputy. Mr. Saleh has said he will not sign the plan in his capacity as president, but will only sign it as leader of the ruling General People's Congress party.

Some information for this report was provided by AFP and Reuters.

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