Yemen's defence minister said on Monday that the army supports President Ali Abdullah Saleh and will defend him against any "coup against democracy" regardless of the Supreme Military Council's indefinite meeting in the absence of the president, according to a statement.
"The armed forces will stay faithful to the oath they gave before God, the nation and political leadership under the brother president Ali Abdullah Saleh...," said the statement, a copy of which was obtained by Reuters.
"We will not allow under any circumstances an attempt at a coup against democracy and constitutional legitimacy, or violation of the security of the nation and citizens."
Yemeni television showed footage of Saleh, facing popular protests against his 32-year rule, swearing in new members of the appointed Shura Council, Yemen's upper house of parliament.
The Yemeni president also announced that he invited Saudi intervention. Around 1,000 Saudi soldiers and 500 police officers from the United Arab Emirates entered Bahrain to protect government facilities during the unrest.The Gulf force was deployed to help prop up the US-backed regime in Bahrain. Its intervention was the first major cross-border military action to challenge one of the revolts sweeping across the Arab world.
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