Protesters have been demanding the resignation of President Ali Abdullah Saleh since January [Reuters]
At least nine people are reported killed and dozens wounded in the latest clashes between government forces and tribesmen in Yemen.

The dead on Wednesday in the central city of Taiz included pro-opposition fighters and civilians, AP news agency said. Reporting in Yemen is restricted, making independent verification of the claims difficult.

A field hospital doctor, Abdel-Raziq al-Gabri, said security forces randomly shelled several neighbourhoods in Taiz, where pro-opposition fighters had taken over a government building in the city centre.


Taiz has been a focal point for anti-government protesters demanding the resignation of Ali Abdullah Saleh, Yemen's president since 1978.

The protests began eight months ago, inspired by Arab revolts in Tunisia and Egypt where long-serving leaders were forced out of power.

The uprising has weakened Yemen's economy and left the government in chaos, triggering a wave of unrest that has killed hundreds of lives and injured thousands more.

The defence ministry said security forces had to respond after the opposition took over some government buildings and banks in Taiz.

An amateur video appeared to show the injured being treated in a hospital in Taiz.

Violence was also reported in the capital Sanaa but there were no reliable figures of casualties.

In Sanaa, intermittent clashes erupted late on Tuesday in Hasaba district between government troops and gunmen loyal to influential tribal chief Sheikh Sadeq al-Ahmar, killing at least three people, the AFP news agency reported.

The dead included two tribesmen and a policemen, according to medical officials and the interior ministry.

At least seven others were wounded in the restive district, the scene of fierce clashes and shelling in recent weeks, said the medics.