Gulf Arab States Demand End to Yemen Fighting

The Gulf Cooperation Council has called for an immediate end to deadly fighting in Yemen between security forces and opposition tribesmen.

GCC Secretary General Abdel Latif al-Zayyani said Tuesday the six-nation bloc fears the violence may spread.

Tuesday was the second day of fighting in the capital, Sana'a, following refusal by President Ali Abdullah Saleh to sign a GCC-brokered deal that calls for him to yield power in return for legal immunity.

Medical sources say 24 tribesmen were killed in Tuesday's fighting, while government officials reported the deaths of 14 soldiers.

The opposition tribesmen took control of several government buildings in Sana'a, while forces loyal to President Saleh fired mortars at the residence of tribal chief Sheikh Sadeq al-Ahmar.

The United States on Tuesday urged Mr. Saleh to sign the GCC-brokered deal so Yemen can resolve its crisis.

Al-Ahmar's decision to engage his fighters in fighting against government forces marks an escalation of the nearly four-month-old uprising in Yemen.

Gulf Arab states suspended efforts to mediate in the uprising on Sunday, after Mr. Saleh refused to sign a deal to hand power to a deputy within 30 days, in return for legal immunity.

Mr. Saleh backed out of the deal after Yemen's opposition signed it on Saturday. It was the third time the Yemeni leader has refused to sign the deal.