Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has declared a state of emergency across the country, after regime forces killed dozens of people in the latest anti-government protests.
Yemen's defense ministry announced on Friday that President Saleh made the decision following a meeting with the country's higher National Defense Council.
The announcement came shortly after pro-regime loyalists and security forces opened fire on protesters in the capital, killing at least 50 people.
Hundreds of protesters were also injured in the clashes. According to medical sources, most of the injuries were to the head, neck and chest.
Snipers are shooting protesters in from rooftops, a Press TV correspondent reported on Friday.
Protesters are calling for an end to President Saleh's three-decade rule.
Following the violence, opposition groups said that there is no possibility of reaching an agreement with the government and urged Saleh to leave.
"There is no longer any possibility of mutual understanding with this regime and he has no choice but to surrender authority to the people," Yassin Noman, rotating president of Yemen's umbrella opposition group, told Reuters.
Similar anti-Saleh rallies are also being held in other Yemeni cities, including the southern port city of Aden and Hodeida in the west.
