SANA'A: After rumored threats of legal reprisals such as travel bans and asset freezing by European countries, the regime of President Ali Abdullah Saleh has caved in and agreed to the formation of a military committee, which will oversee the restructuration of the armed forces as per the agreement of the power-transfer deal signed last month. Since Saleh's family member are still occupying key posts within the military, the opposition has pushed the importance of changing this dynamic in its negotiations with the regime arguing that the army needed to be freed from any one family's affiliation to remain truly independent and loyal to the nation. Upon the signature of the GCC brokered deal and its mechanisms of implementation both parties agreed that Vice-President Abdu Rabbo Mansoor Hadi would oversee the military throughout the transfer. Days of fighting in the southern city of Taiz and a reported 20 dead, have many in Yemen were already talking about a failed transition of power, warning civil war could be eminent. On Sunday, the government announced that it had formed its Military Council. A defected general and former defense minister is said to be sitting with the opposition to ensure transparency as he is fully aware of the country's military structure and range. The opposition breathed a sigh of relief at the announcement. “The formation of the committee is a good step,” said Yassin Noman, leader of the opposition Joint Meeting Parties, which had agreed with the government that the body would include equal numbers from JMP and Saleh's General People's Congress (GPC). “What concerns us are continued moves toward implementing the transfer of power under the … Gulf initiative without the nomination of anyone accused of human rights violations,” Noman said in remarks to Reuters, in an apparent reference to Saleh allies accused of involvement in a bloody crackdown on protests. BM ShortURL: http://goo.gl/XzHkq Tags: Committee, GCC, Military, Transfer Section: Latest News, Yemen
