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Yemen Timeline: From Jasmine Revolution to Widespread Unrest

   VOA News  June 04, 2011
   Anti-government protestors shout slogans during a demonstration
   demanding the resignation of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in
   Sana'a, Yemen, June 4, 2011.

Photo: AP

   Anti-government protestors shout slogans during a demonstration
   demanding the resignation of Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh, in
   Sana'a, Yemen, June 4, 2011.

   January 22: Hundreds of students and other protesters gather at Sana'a
   University, calling for an end to the 32-year rule of President Ali
   Abdullah Saleh. The demonstrators were apparently inspired by the
   protests that led to the ouster of Tunisia's President.
   March 1: Tens of thousands of opposition activists demand the ouster of
   Saleh. President Saleh fires five of 22 provincial governors, some for
   criticizing the crackdown on the protests.
   March 8: The government deploys military vehicles and extra troops in
   Sana'a, the capital, as police open fire on protesters, reportedly for
   the first time, killing at least one person and wounding 80 others.
   March 18: As protest crowds swell, security forces fire on protesters
   in Sana'a, killing at least 52 people and wounding more than 100.
   President Saleh declares a state of emergency. World leaders criticize
   the crackdown.
   March 20-21: President Saleh dismisses his entire Cabinet. Some senior
   military commanders join the protesters calling for the president's
   ouster.
   April 2-3: Yemen's opposition leaders urge President Saleh to hand over
   power to Vice President Abd al-Rab Mansur al-Hadi. He refuses. Rival
   demonstrators clash throughout the country.
   April 5-8: President Saleh accepts an invitation from the six-nation
   Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) to hold talks in Saudi Arabia with
   opposition representatives.
   April 10-11: GCC foreign ministers urge President Saleh to transfer his
   powers to his vice president. Mr. Saleh welcomes the proposal, but does
   not specify a timeline for stepping down.
   April 14-15: Opposition leaders give Mr. Saleh a two-week deadline to
   resign. More religious and tribal leaders side with the protesters.
   April 17-18: Hundreds of thousands of people demonstrate across Yemen,
   despite facing live ammunition from government forces. An opposition
   delegation headed by former foreign minister Mohammed Basindwa meets
   with Gulf Arab mediators in Saudi Arabia to lay out conditions for
   entering formal talks. The effort is unsuccessful.
   April 19: The U.N. Security Council meets on Yemen for the first time
   since the protests erupted in January. Russia and China reportedly
   prevent the council from publicly endorsing a draft statement calling
   on the parties in Yemen to "exercise restraint and enter a dialogue."
   April 21-25: The GCC presents President Saleh with a plan for ending
   the political impasse and unrest. The plan calls for Mr. Saleh to
   resign within a month and for a presidential election two months later.
   April 30-May 1: Yemen's main opposition coalition accuses President
   Saleh of refusing to sign the Gulf agreement. Saleh says he will sign
   as the leader of the ruling General People's Congress party but not in
   his capacity as president, as required by the plan.
   May 15: Yemen's main opposition coalition says the GCC plan to end the
   country's political crisis is "dead."
   May 21-22: Yemen's opposition says it has signed a Gulf-brokered deal
   that would see President Saleh's transfer of power within a month. Mr.
   Saleh denounces the proposed deal as a "coup."
   May 23-26: Deadly gun battles break out in Sana'a between Yemeni
   security forces and forces loyal to tribal leader Sheikh Sadiq
   al-Ahmar. The opposition tribesmen take control of several government
   buildings.
   May 27: Opposition tribal leaders say they are talking with the
   government and that a cease-fire is in effect, temporarily halting most
   of the fighting with security forces. International calls continue from
   several world powers calling for Mr. Saleh to leave office soon.
   June 3: President Saleh and five other Yemeni officials are wounded in
   a rocket attack on the presidential compound in Sana'a.
   June 4: President Saleh's forces and forces loyal to tribal leader
   Sheikh Sadiq al-Ahmar accept a Saudi-brokered cease-fire. A truce
   negotiated a week earlier quickly deteriorated.