Yemen president Saleh makes new proposition to protestors

Ali Abdullah Saleh made his offer to protestors at a meeting on Tuesday night with Mohammed al-Yadoumi, head of the Islah party. It was the first time Saleh had dealt with Islah, who was once a partner in his government, an opposition spokesmen said.

"The opposition could pick a head of government of its own choosing and there would be parliamentary elections by the end of the year," an opposition source said of Saleh's offer.

The opposition promptly rejected the offer, with a spokesman calling it "an attempt to prolong the survival of regime".

Weeks of protests by many thousands in Sanaa and other cities have sent Saleh's 32-year rule to the brink of collapse. However, the United States and top oil producer Saudi Arabia, a key Yemen financer, are concerned over who could succeed their ally.

They have long regarded Saleh as a wall of stability who can keep al Qaeda from extending its foothold in an Arabian Peninsula country that many see as close to disintegration.

Yemen's al Qaeda wing claimed responsibility for a foiled attempt in late 2009 to blow up an airliner bound for Detroit, and for US-bound cargo bombs sent in October 2010.

US officials have said openly they like working with Saleh - who has allowed unpopular US air strikes in Yemen against al Qaeda - and Saleh has said the US ambassador in Sanaa is involved in talks to find a solution.

Hundreds of thousands of anti-government protesters again packed the streets of several Yemeni cities on Wednesday to demand Saleh's ouster and denounce a munitions factory blast that left at least 100 people dead.

They have been blaming Saleh for mismanagement, repression and the fatal shootings of protesters, and say they will not relent until he goes.