Three dead with Yemen protesters testing limits

  Protesters run near a burning tyre during a demonstration in Taiz Yemeni police opened fire near protesters who set up barricades of burning tyres in a city on Tuesday, killing at least three people, as Gulf ministers tried to bring the sides to talks on a presidential transfer

of power. The UN Security Council was also due to meet late in the day to discuss the situation in Yemen, where Western and Gulf allies fear a prolonged standoff could lead to clashes between rival military units in Sanaa and elsewhere. Doctors said at least one person was shot dead and another wounded at the protest in Taiz, south of Sana'a, as protesters across the country started to test security forces' limits after three months of demonstrations demanding the overthrow of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Police responded with gunfire in Taiz when protesters made piles of burning tyres. They planned to march past the provincial governor's office. "They [protesters] are resorting to these tactics to try and escalate the situation because they feel like their demands are not being met," said Mohammad Al Mohammadi, a protester in Taiz. Protesters also shouted orders to salute soldiers who belonged to a battalion loyal to General Ali Mohsin, who has sent troops to protect demonstrators in Sana'a, as they marched past an army post manned by his troops.

Both Western and Gulf allies have tried without success to broker a resolution involving a transition of power from Saleh, who has led the Arabian Peninsula state for 32 years. He says he wants a hand over, but only to "safe hands". Western countries and Arab neighbours say they fear sustained clashes in the poor, mountainous country where Saleh has already lost control of several provinces would cause chaos that could benefit an active Al Qaida wing operating in Yemen.

The United Nations Security Council was planning to discuss the situation in Yemen yesterday at 1930 GMT, diplomats said, in a meeting that would include a briefing by a senior official from the UN Department of Political Affairs. But Russian Foreign Minister Sergei Lavrov said the Yemeni opposition should be careful not to hold back from talks in hope of getting foreign help to topple the government. "That is a very dangerous logic which can cause a chain reaction," he said, speaking on a visit to Serbia. "All those responsible, particularly members of the UN Security Council, must not opt for conflicts but for dialogue."

Gulf Arab states stepped in this month with an offer to mediate in Yemen after Western-brokered talks stalled, and Saleh representatives were due to meet Gulf foreign ministers in Abu Dhabi yesterday to try to get direct talks back on track. The Abu Dhabi meeting comes two days after a delegation of Saleh's opponents, who had initially rejected Gulf-led talks because they had not set a departure time frame for Saleh, met Gulf ministers in Riyadh to lay out their objections. "We have great hopes that the Abu Dhabi meeting will extract a clear commitment for Saleh to leave. We are not currently planning to march on the palace but we will escalate protests with a comprehensive civil strike," said Mesha'al Mujahid, a protest organiser in Sanaa.