Yemen's president shakes up military commands Under the power transfer deal, Mr Hadi is tasked with reunifying the army, which had split during the year-long uprising against Mr Saleh's rule, with some units openly siding with protesters. Neighbouring Saudi Arabia, the world's biggest oil exporter, and the United States both backed the transition deal, partly due to concerns over the expansion of al-Qaeda's regional wing in a country next to major Red Sea oil shipping lanes. Saba said that a senior army officer loyal to dissident General Ali Mohsen, who broke away from Mr Saleh after the protests began, was also replaced. The reshuffle did not affect Brigadier General Ahmed Ali Abdullah Saleh, the ex-president's son and commander of the Republican Guards, or Mr Saleh's nephew, Brigadier General Yehia Mohammed Abdullah Saleh, who heads the paramilitary Central Security Forces. Also replaced were the governors of four provinces, including that of Taiz, a staunch Saleh ally who led a bloody crackdown against protesters, and the governor of southern Abyan province, where al Qaeda's regional wing has seized swathes of territory. This is the largest military shake-up in recent times. It took many by surprise," said Mohammed Albasha, spokesman for Yemen's embassy in Washington. Analysts said Hadi appeared to have tried to be balanced, by replacing officials from both rival camps. The decisions show that President Hadi is distinguished as a responsible commander. I believe the decisions have been taken in consultation with all political parties," Yemeni analyst Ali Saif Hassan said. A suspected al Qaeda suicide bomber blew himself up near a police building in southern Yemen on Friday, a security official said, hours after two militants died when a bomb they were carrying on a motorbike went off prematurely near a paramilitary police headquarters in the southern port city of Aden. There were no other reports of casualties in either attack.