[Anderson:] You're watching CONNECT THE WORLD here on CNN. I'm Becky Anderson in London for you. Now, as his country bleeds, Yemen's president may be coming to the end of his 33 year rule. Two Yemeni officials tell CNN that the U.S. is now helping to mediate a transition for Ali Abdullah Saleh. We're going to have the full details on that in just a moment. Well, it comes as protesters who want to be rid of Saleh's regime clashed with security forces on Monday in several Yemen cities. Medical sources say at least 14 people have been killed and hundreds have been injured. Witnesses say 90,000 demonstrators took to the streets. Well, I'm joined right now by CNN's Mohammed Jamjoom at CNN in Abu Dhabi. I know you've spent much of the last three months in and out of Yemen. You know the story on the ground as well as anybody else. The picture, it seems, is very volatile still.
[Mohammed Jamjoom, Cnn Correspondent:] Well, that's right, Becky. Another bloody, grizzly day in Yemen today. Eyewitnesses, activities, protesters and medics telling us that in Taiz, where there have been protests the last several weeks, that today at least 15 people killed, hundreds injured. Yesterday, there were at least three killed, hundreds injured, as well. Also in the city of Hudaida, protests anti-government protests today. Eyewitnesses and medics on the scene say that snipers dressed in civilian clothing fired on crowds of protesters, killing them, that there were tens of people wounded in the street waiting for emergency care. Meanwhile, in Sanaa, where, also, anti-government protesters were out in the tens of thousands, later in the day, tens of thousands of them, we're told, were marching toward the Republican Palace to show their defiance toward President Ali Abdullah Saleh and to show their solidarity with all those killed in Taiz and Hudaida yesterday and today. The situation really worsening there, not just because the anti-government protests and protesters keep growing and that that movement has really gained momentum in the last several weeks. Also because military commanders that used to be close to Saleh have defected from his ranks. They have put their troops in the streets there to defend the anti- government demonstrators whom they're trying to protect. There are rival factions of the military in different parts of Yemen. And the worry now by Yemeni officials is that if something sparks, some kind of confrontation between these different military units, that they could spark an all-out civil war in that country Becky.
[Anderson:] Mohammed, thank you for that. One of the longest running, perhaps more surprising revolts across the region. World affairs correspondent Jill Dougherty is standing by in Washington with more now on what CNN has learned about a possible transition for Yemen's president Jill, a man once much courted by U.S. authorities. Why the change?
[Jill Dougherty, Cnn Foreign Affairs Correspondent:] Well, the problem is right now, what you're seeing on the streets, Becky, you know, the demonstrators, the what they are pushing for right now. And the U.S. knows, of course, that President Saleh has said he will step down by the end of the year, after constitutional reform and after elections. But the opposition is saying he has to step down right now. So the U.S. is now in the middle, trying to mediate, bring both sides together. They're talking, certainly, to both sides. And a senior administration official saying today that they are trying to get President Saleh to move more quickly to answer the demands of the opposition. Now in public, they're being a lot more circumspect. Here's what they said at the State Department today.
[Mark Toner, U.s. State Department Spokesman:] There's a gap between what President Saleh said and what the people have have asked for and certainly in our discussions, both in both with the government and with the opposition, that, you know, we're helping or we're talking about bridging that gap. Again, our goal here is to see a peaceful solution to the to the violence and to the crisis, one that meets the realizes the Yemeni people's aspirations that that need to be addressed.
[Dougherty:] And some of the concerns are, of course, that right now, they want to stabilize the situation, not have it get worse, Becky. And also remember that President Saleh has been a loyal ally of the United States in the fight against terror. In fact, specifically against al Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula, that version in Yemen. And at the White House today, they warned that al Qaeda is trying, potentially, to take advantage of this situation.
[Anderson:] A fascinating developing story. You'll get it here on CNN as we learn how things change. Jill, thank you for that. Well, the world also watching Syria, of course. A human rights lawyer says that Damascus is playing a game with activists. Attorney Razan Zeitouneh gave CNN a list, showing us some activities have been freed, while hundreds of others have been arrested. She says it's a back and forth bid to placate anti-government protesters and to crush dissent at the same time. And elsewhere, Iran getting involved. Tehran pushing regional rival, Saudi Arabia, to get its troops out of Bahrain. You're up to date on the region. When we come back, the rush to stop a leak Japan's nuclear crisis takes another turn, with what authorities call an unavoidable action. We'll tell you more about this desperate move after this.