Scores quitted the General People's Congress, the ruling party, on Sunday as blows to the regime struggling to gain the public support amid the escalating protests demanding its removal continue.

In Dhamar, lawyers, tribal sheikhs and social figures tendered their resignations from the ruling party in protest at abusing its power and forcing school and college students to take to the streets for the pro-government rallies as well as in protest against violence against the anti-regime demonstrators and sit-inners, informed sources said.

The resigned said students were forced to participate in the rallies that were said to have aimed to show support to the president Saleh's initiative recently offered for the opposition to come back to dialogue and to work together towards concrete reforms, the sources added.

The move by the party was a serious violation of the constitution and as confiscation of freedom of expression through forcing the people to take part in rallies they might not like to attend, the sources cited some of those who resigned as saying.

The resignations also came in protest at involving children in political rallies and festivals as well as closing schools with the aim of meeting personal interests, they added.

In the last few weeks, important figures, supporters and tribal sheikhs have left the ruling party after the crackdown on the anti-government protests and sit-inns intensified and in protest against illegal policies of the regime facing mounting pressure by hundreds of thousands of sit-inners and by external allies.