SANA, Yemen — Hundreds of thousands of Yemenis rallied across the country Friday to support a military shakeup this week that limited the powers held by loyalists of the country’s ousted leader, including his son.
President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi’s measures on Wednesday brought the military’s Special Forces and Republican Guard run by ousted leader Ali Abdullah Saleh’s son, Ahmed, under the control of the Defense Ministry.
Restructuring the army was a top demand by Yemenis after Saleh’s ouster in February. He ruled the impoverished Arab nation for 33 years and was forced to step down after protests during the country’s Arab Spring uprising last year.
The United States and powerful Arab Gulf nations led by Saudi Arabia helped broker the power-transfer deal, which eased him out of office.
Saleh has been blamed by many over the past year for using loyalists and relatives in powerful posts to stall reform efforts by the new leadership under Hadi.
Front Section, Pages 7 on 12/22/2012