Sacked Yemeni general agrees to quit air force

SANAA - Yemen's sacked air force chief, who had refused to quit and threatened to shoot down civil planes in the capital of Sanaa early this month, finally agreed on Tuesday to leave his post as air force commander, the country's interior ministry said in a statement.

UN envoy to Yemen Jamal Benomar said after witnessing the commander's power transfer ceremony that "I'm happy with the resolution of the standoff over the military appointments. It's a step in the right direction."

On April 6, Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi issued a republican decree to replace about 20 military generals, including air force chief Maj. Gen. Mohammed Saleh al-Ahmar, in an attempt to implement reforms in the army in accordance to a UN-backed power transfer deal that eased former President Ali Abdullah Saleh out of power after one-year unrest.

The sacked air force chief, also a half brother of Saleh, refused to accept his resignation and threatened to shoot down civil planes, which led to temporarily shutdown of Sanaa International Airport early April.

Hadi has vowed to launch more reforms in the army to end divisions that threatened to split the impoverished Arab country.

The ongoing reforms in the army aimed at paving the way for a national dialogue to settle disputes among political parties, as well as concentrate efforts on battling resurgent al-Qaida network, according to government officials.

The country's opposition groups have announced their conditions for engaging in the national dialogue, including the removal of Saleh's relatives from high-ranking military posts.

The impoverished Arab country had been gripped by the yearlong unrest since the eruption of mass anti-government protests in January 2011. Deadly clashes between government troops and the defected army have left thousands of people killed and more people fled their home.