Thousands of Yemenis took to the streets in the capital Sana'a on Friday to protest a power transfer deal that grants outgoing President Ali Abudullah Saleh immunity from prosecution, dpa reported.
The protesters gathered in Change Square, which has been the epicentre of anti-Saleh demonstrations, demanding that he and officials of his regime be prosecuted for alleged crimes against humanity.
Demonstrators, braving shelling by pro-Saleh forces, held a similar protest in the southern city of Taiz, said opposition activists. No casualties were reported.
Saleh and the opposition Joint Meetings Party on Wednesday signed a power transfer deal brokered by the Gulf Cooperation Council, effectively ending Saleh's 33-year rule.
But protesters say the deal falls short of their demands because many key positions in the government and the military are held by Saleh's family and friends.
Elsewhere on Friday, the International Committee of the Red Cross (ICRC) said it had been unable to enter the northern Yemeni province of Dammaj to provide much needed humanitarian assistance for over a month due to an armed conflict.
"We are concerned about the situation in Dammaj," said Eric Marclay, the head of the ICRC delegation in Yemen.
"Thousands of people who live in this part of Sa'ada governorate have been denied access to essential commodities, including their daily needs in food and basic medicines," he added.
Dammaj has been severely affected by a rebellion by the Shiite minority Houthis against Yemen's central government and months of unrest in the impoverished Arabian Peninsula country, according to the relief group.
"According to the basic rules of international humanitarian law, persons taking no part in hostilities must at all times be treated humanely, regardless of their race, colour, religion or faith", said Marclay.
The Houthis claim they are defending themselves against discrimination and attacks by government forces.