Ali Abdullah Saleh

Saleh, Ali Abdullah (älē' äbdŭl'ä sä'lĕ), 1942-, Yemeni political leader, president of Yemen (1990-), b. Bayt al-Ahmar. Saleh joined the army in 1958 and rose through the ranks, becoming a colonel in 1982. An active participant in the 1974 coup, he became president of the Yemen Arab Republic (or Northern Yemen) and commander-in-chief of the army in 1978. Saleh survived assassination plots and coup attempts to secure a third term as president in 1988, and after unification with Southern Yemen in 1990 he became president of Yemen, retaining power after a civil war in 1994. He was reelected by popular vote in 1999 and 2006, but the elections were marred by fraud and irregulaties.