SANAA, Yemen - Tens of thousands are rallying across Yemen, denouncing the killing of 12 protesters the previous day in the capital Sanaa and insisting the country's long-time ruler step down.
Demonstrators defied heavy rains Thursday to condemn the brutal crackdown by forces loyal to President Ali Abdullah Saleh in several central cities, as well as in Taiz and in Saada.
Saleh has clung to office despite near-daily protests calling on his ouster. Yemen's uprising started in early February, inspired by revolts in the Arab world.
On Wednesday, security forces backed by snipers on rooftops fired into about 100,000 people in Sanaa, killing 12 and wounding some 190.
Opposition parties said it was a "massacre" and a crime against humanity committed by Saleh and his relatives.
