Legal Commentary

Yemen President Won't Run for Re-Election

By Jeralyn

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has announced he won't run for another term.

"No extension, no inheritance, no resetting the clock," he said, making reference to ruling party proposals to institute term limits that had been seen as allowing him to run again.

His announcement comes a day before planned protests, called "A Day of Rage" are scheduled. Yemen has been on the edge of failing for a while. As I wrote a year ago:

Yemen will become a failed state without aid. Between the rebel tribes in the north, the secessionists in the south and al-Qaida, the Government is out-matched. Add to that its dwindling oil reserves, critical lack of water and horrendous prison system that just breeds more terrorists, and it's a certainty Yemen can't fix its problems on its own.

It sounds like a series of domino effects is in play: Egypt, Tunisia, Jordan and now Yemen. What's next? Sudan? Or Algeria or Syria?

Full post as published by TalkLeft on February 02, 2011 (boomark / email).