Washington: US has condemned the violence in Yemen, including the attack on the Presidential Palace in Sanaa, and called for an immediate end to hostilities.
"We call on all sides to cease hostilities immediately and to pursue an orderly and peaceful process of transferring political power as called for in the GCC-brokered agreement," White House Press Secretary Jay Carney said in a statement.
Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh was wounded when rebellious tribesmen struck his palace with rockets on Friday in a dramatic escalation of fighting that has turned parts of Sanaa into a battleground and pushed the country toward civil war.
The attack also wounded nine others, including the Prime Minister, Saleh's powerful top security adviser and the two heads of the parliament, as well as a cleric. Seven guards were killed.
"Violence cannot resolve the issues that confront Yemen, and yesterday's events cannot be a justification for a new round of fighting. We urge all sides to heed the wishes of the Yemeni people, whose aspirations include peace, reform, and prosperity," Carney said.
In meetings held from June 1 to June 3 in Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, Assistant to the President for Counterterrorism and Homeland Security John Brennan and his Saudi and Emirati counterparts expressed deep concern at the deteriorating situation throughout Yemen, he said.
Brennan said that US would continue to coordinate closely with both governments on developments in Yemen in an effort to help bring an end to the violence, Carney said.
All parties must end these attacks and avoid any further escalation or any further casualties in the days ahead, State Department spokesman Mark Toner said.
Toner dismissed as "absurd," the allegations by spokesman for the Yemeni Government that Secretary of State Hillary Clinton and President Barack Obama were inciting assassinations in Yemen.
"Our focus has been in working with the government and with President Saleh in support of the Gulf Cooperation Council's proposal," he said.
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