Yemeni president arrives in the United States
Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh arrived in the United States on Saturday, marking the latest phase in a series of political moves surrounding his transition from power in violence-wracked Yemen.
His arrival was confirmed by Yemen’s foreign press office and U.S. State Department spokesman Noel Clay.
The embattled president is expected to remain in the United States for a short time, while he undergoes medical treatment, Clay said.
Earlier in the day, Saleh’s plane landed to refuel at a United Kingdom commercial airport, according to a Foreign & Commonwealth Office spokesman who declined to be named, citing agency policy.
The purpose of Saleh’s U.S. trip is a “private medical visit,” according to the Yemeni Embassy in Washington. It said he plans to return to Yemen in February.
Saleh was wounded in a June bomb attack on his presidential palace.
The United States does not want to come across as providing safe haven to a dictator responsible for a violent, deadly crackdown on an uprising, according to a source with knowledge of the deliberations.
The decision was made in hopes that Saleh’s departure from Yemen could ease tensions in the country and help pave the way toward elections next year, the official said.