Western diplomats say Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh is not likely to return to Yemen soon, Reuters reported Thursday.

"We believe he was seriously injured ... He is not coming in the coming days, he is not coming soon," the diplomat told Reuters.

Saleh is currently in Saudi Arabia where he is being treated for injuries sustained when a bomb exploded in the mosque of the presidential palace in the Yemeni capital, Sana'a on June 3.

Western diplomats also added that the explosion targeting the mosque of the presidential complex on June 3rd, was caused by many bombs planted in the mosque.

Yemeni security officials confirmed that five explosives inside the mosque and a sixth one outside it didn’t explode.

Calls for Immediate Transfer of Power

In Saleh's absence US officials are calling for an "immediate" transfer of power in Yemen before he returns, which some say runs counter to US directed counter-terror efforts there.

"We continue to believe that an immediate, peaceful, and orderly transition is in the best interest of the Yemeni people," US Assistant Secretary for Near Eastern Affairs Jeffrey Feltman told reporters in Sana'a.

"We urge all sides to engage in dialogue that peacefully moves Yemen forward," he added shortly after meeting with Yemeni Vice President Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi.

US Pressure?

Feltman evaded questions about whether the US had pressured Saleh not to return saying they expected Saleh to act in the best interests of his people.

"We expect the president to take a decision in the best interests of the Yemeni people. It is a Yemeni decision, not an American decision," Feltman said.

But Yemeni observers say there is concerted pressure from the US and the six-member Gulf Cooperation Council to convince Saleh to sit the transfer of power out.

“There is an American effort in cooperation with Saudi Arabia and the rest of the Gulf Cooperation Council members, to make such statements to show that the president’s return is not possible (soon) and to convince his (Saleh’s) children to cooperate in the power transfer issue," Abdul Gani Al Iryani, a Yemeni political analyst, said.

Saleh Clan Blocking Transfer

Since Saleh was taken to Saudia Arabia moves by Vice President Hadi to resolve Yemen's political crisis have been contested by Saleh's sons and nephews, who control some of the most powerful pillars of Yemen's military, including Saleh's son Ahmad, who commands the elite Republican Guard.

Feltman has also met with Ahmad and his brother Khaled, analysts said.

“The Americans are trying to achieve a power transfer before Saleh’s return,” Mustafa al-Ani, director of security and terrorism research at the Dubai-based Gulf Research Center, told Gulf News.

“And once Saleh returns, the issue will be solved and Saleh will be forced either to resign or retire. I believe they (Americans) won’t be successful in this,” al-Ani said.

al-Ani explained his view is based on the fact that the political system in Yemen is still in place.

“There is no system in the world where the president, the prime ministers, the parliament speaker and several senior ministers suffer serious injuries and leave the country and the system doesn’t collapse,” al-Ani noted.

GCC & US Goals Differ

Saudi Arabia and its GCC allies have made a resolutions to Yemen's political crisis a top priority.

Previously, a GCC-brokered deal to achieve a smooth power transfer in Yemen failed when Saleh backed out of the deal and refused to sign it.

While Feltman says the “United States supports the initiative proposed by the Gulf Cooperation Council as a credible path to confront the challenging political situation in Yemen," Yemeni analysts said Yemen’s stability, and not Saleh's departure, is a priority to Washington.

“The most important thing to the US is to restore stability in the country so there will be a government capable of fighting terrorism” noted al-Ani.