A Blog by the Editor of The Middle East Journal

Putting Middle Eastern Events in Cultural and Historical Context

Friday, May 20, 2011

Salih Says He'll Sign But Calls New Elections: Huh?

As I noted on Wednesday, the day Yemen's ‘Ali ‘Abdullah Salih was going to sign the GCC transition deal, he didn't. On Thursday, he promised he'd sign it on Sunday, and then called for new elections. That muddles things further: does he still plan to sign the deal Sunday, or are the elections a diversion? Based on his track record, I'd bet on the latter. Unless, of course, he chose Sunday because he's gambling that the world really is going to end tomorrow. The odds of Salih stepping aside Sunday may be a bit better than the Rapture happening tomorrow, but in both cases I'll believe it when I see it.

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