A new truce has been reached in Taez, Yemen's second largest city which has been the scene for sporadic clashes between troops and armed tribesmen backing pro-democracy protests, officials and tribal sources said Wednesday.

The ceasefire was agreed upon on Tuesday by representatives of the local authorities, tribes and youth protesters who have been camping for months in the centre of the city demanding the ouster of President Ali Abdullah Saleh.

According to the agreement, the elite Republican Guard troops in the city will return to their bases, and armed tribesmen will withdraw from the streets, allowing the deployment of police, the sources said.

Influential local tribes had deployed their armed men in Taez in June to protect protesters from attacks by troops loyal to the embattled president, who has been in Saudi Arabia since early June for treatment after being wounded in a bomb attack on his Sanaa compound early June.

A previous truce reached at the end of June had collapsed early August as clashes were renewed, resulting in several deaths on both sides.

Protesters have since January been calling for Saleh to quit office.