Sanaa , Yemen ( CNN ) -- Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh is calling for an end to the protests in that country and said he supports the creation of a national unity government to oversee upcoming parliamentary elections , the state-run news service Saba reported Wednesday . According to the news service , Saleh made the statement during a meeting with an official with the non-profit National Democratic Institute . Saba reported that Saleh told the official , Leslie Campbell , the NDI 's regional director for the Middle East and North Africa , that demonstrations must stop to `` prepare for a suitable atmosphere '' for the elections . Saleh also ordered security forces to prevent clashes between demonstrators both for and against . the government , and urged both sides to prevent `` saboteurs '' from entering their ranks , Saba reported . Saleh also repeated his pledge not to run for re-election , Saba reported . Anti-government demonstrators say that 's not good enough . Undeterred by an attack on their sit-in a day earlier , anti-government protesters gathered at Sanaa University again on Wednesday to demand that Saleh step down . `` We are worried that it could happen again . But we have nothing to lose and it 's for the sake of the country , '' said Yasser Hasani , a student . At least two people were killed when government loyalists attacked and opened fire on sit-in participants Tuesday night , an opposition lawmaker said . Foad Dahaba , a lawmaker with the opposition Islah party , provided the figure to CNN on Wednesday . Until now , protesters had provided conflicting numbers for the toll . Some of the protesters carried photos of the two victims , calling them martyrs . `` We feel sad for what happened yesterday but we are enthusiastic that their blood will not be forgotten , '' Hasani said Wednesday . `` Everyday that passes with bloodshed makes us stronger and more firm in our demands . Earlier Tuesday , sit-in participants had overturned a car and set it on fire after discovering weapons inside apparently brought to a demonstration by government loyalists , a protester said . Demonstrators noticed a parked car near the sit-in and were told that the people in the car were government loyalists who had come to harass them , according to one of the protesters , Adnan al-Nathari . Several hundred students converged on the car to confront those inside , who then fled , he said . The protesters searched the car and found a rifle and a gun , al-Nathari told CNN . The students then flipped the car and set it ablaze . There were no injuries reported in that incident . The sit-in at Sanaa University was one of at least five protests on Tuesday in Yemen . There were others in Aden and Taiz , and in the provinces of Ibb and Lahj . Saleh 's call for the creation of a new government to supervise parliamentary elections came two days after he rejected demands that he give up power . On Monday , Saleh rejected demands that he step aside and compared the anti-government protests to an illness sweeping through the region . `` This is a virus and is not part of our heritage or the culture of the Yemeni people , '' he told reporters . `` It 's a virus that came from Tunisia to Egypt . And to some regions , the scent of the fever is like influenza . As soon as you sit with someone who is infected , you 'll be infected . '' Saleh added that those seeking change should accept the reforms he has proposed . He had earlier said he wo n't seek another term in 2013 after being in power for 32 years . He also said he would postpone parliamentary elections scheduled for April to allow more time for discussions about reform .
NEW : Yemen 's president calls for a new government to oversee parliamentary elections . NEW : President Saleh calls on security forces to prevent violence . Protesters return to the streets , some carrying photos of the two people who died Tuesday . `` We have nothing to lose , '' says a demonstrator .