(Ahlul Bayt News Agency) - On Friday, Yemeni anti-government protesters rejected Yemen's dependence on the US and Saudi Arabia, saying that their interference in Yemeni affairs would only lead to more instability in the country.
The demonstrators also called for the immediate resignation of Ali Abdullah Saleh and the formation of a transitional council to rule the country and to prevent Saleh from returning to power.
The demonstrations came after Saleh appeared on state TV for the first time since he was injured in an attack on his palace last month.
We have interviewed Hesham Tillawi, host of Current Issues TV & Radio, Louisiana, to discuss the Yemeni revolution with him. What follows is a rough transcript of the interview.
Q: A lot of speculations going on since Saleh was injured and now he is back. What do you make of this TV appearance?
Tillawi: I believe this is him, but I also believe this was recorded. I do not know about him being dead or not but it doesn't really matter. I believe what they are trying to do with this is to prevent a civil war from actually taking place in Yemen.
A civil war in Yemen is not something that would be good for Yemen, or actually good for Saudi Arabia or the United States. They want to try and do exactly what they are doing in other countries.
They are trying to break down the resistance and buy in time so they can get to whatever regime change they want. As for Ali Abdullah Saleh going back to Yemen, I doubt it. I don't believe it will happen.
He is in Saudi Arabia and Saudi Arabia does not want him to be in Yemen. Therefore they will try to do their best to keep him there, if that means that they will have to do stuff that they should not be doing, they want to get everyone to believe that things are okay and let's talk so we can come up with a regime in Yemen that will be good for Saudi Arabia and the US.
Q: When Ali Abdullah Saleh was in Yemen he was being accused of trying to create civil war by launching attacks on the militants, armed tribes men, and of making things turn into a war so he can go on with his accusation that these protesters are violent. At the same time you say that they are trying to prevent the civil war. When you say “they” what do you mean by that?
Tillawi: “They,” the powers that actually work in Yemen and are working throughout the Middle East. What you are seeing there, they are the hands of the Mossad and the hands of the CIA doing the work basically behind the scene.
Ali Abdullah Saleh, I don't know if anyone was accusing him of wanting to start a civil war, I don't really believe that. But I do believe that the powers that are working in the Middle East, they want chaos through the Middle East.
This is a way to keep chaos until they are ready to settle things down their way. They will continue, even if it means going through war, even if they have to go through civil wars. If a country does not go their way they are going to create problems. They are going to create wars. They are going to create chaos until that country is brought down to their feet.
Q: Right now in Yemen, since Ali Abdullah Saleh went out, there has been some kind of a power struggle. Violence is still ongoing between the tribesman and security forces loyal to Ali Abdullah Saleh, especially those operating under his son. Who do you say has the reins of power now in Yemen?
Tillawi: Nobody. Yemen is a little bit different animal in the Middle East. Yemen is a tribal-run country and right now no tribe is holding the country together.
Right now, what is holding the country together, is the army. But as you see, a lot of people, a lot of officers in the military are switching sides. When you have enough people in the military and the military is weakened, that's when you will have a real chaos in Yemen.
Right now nobody has the upper hand in Yemen, but defiantly these forces, the United States, the Mossad, the CIA, these people will not allow Yemen to go back to the Yemeni people, to go back to democracy; actually, democracy… it never was one, and it serves their interests to have a chaos right now.
It does not matter if it goes on for a year, two years, three years, it does not matter, because it serves their interests, coming up with a regime in Yemen that would serve their interests and their objectives.
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