Presidential guards loyal to Yemeni president Ali Abdullah Saleh clashed in the town of Mukalla today with army units backing opposition groups who are demanding his ouster.
The clash wounded one person and highlighted the tension in Yemen, where top generals, diplomats and tribal chiefs defected this week to the side of democracy protesters who have been camped out in central Sanaa for some six weeks.
Army and presidential guards - a force headed by Mr Saleh's son Ahmed - clashed earlier this week in Mukalla, a coastal city in the Hadramout region, leaving one dead on each side.
Mr Saleh and opposition groups have both made proposals for reform. On Wednesday, Mr Saleh offered new presidential elections by January 2012 instead of when his term ends in September 2013.
An umbrella group of civil society organisations called for a transitional council of nine figures "not involved with the corruption of the old regime" to draw up a new constitution over a six-month period ahead of elections.
But the issue of what would happen to Mr Saleh, who outlasted a civil war in 1994, a recent rebellion by northern Shias and separatist discontent in the south, was left untouched in the proposal from the group, called the Civil Bloc.
Opposition parties said today they were tired of the drip-feed of concessions. "This talk is aimed at delaying the announcement of the death of the regime. The opposition does not need to respond," said a spokesman.
Mr Saleh, in power since 1978, made the offer in a letter sent not only to the opposition but also to Gen Ali Mohsen, commander of the northwestern zone.
Gen Mohsen said this week he was now supporting protesters in a blow to Mr Saleh that has helped turn the tide against him. Gen Mohsen and others defectors made their move after 52 protesters were shot dead in Sanaa last week.
Reuters