President Saleh has reigned over, cultivated, and reveled in increasing chaos. The tide of public opinion is now clearly against his rule. The pro-democracy protesters, like their brethren in Tunisia and Egypt, are mostly youthful, secular reformers, and many professionals from across the political spectrum have now joined their ranks. The choice is not between Mr. Saleh and Al Qaeda.
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MOHAMMAD HUWEISS/AFP/Getty Images/Newscom
Yemeni anti-government protesters shout slogans demanding the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh during a protest in central Sanaa on March 22, 2011 as Yemen's parliamentary opposition rejected an offer from Saleh to step down by January 2012.