Saleh has shrapnel removed from eye

RIYADH, Saudi Arabia, June 15 (UPI) -- Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh was in stable condition after undergoing eye surgery to remove shrapnel, a hospital official in Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, said.

The official said Saleh was receiving nutrition through a tube and suffers from second-degree burns to 40 percent of his body, the result of an attack on his compound in Sanaa, Yemen's capital, nearly two weeks ago, al-Masry al-Youm reported Wednesday.

Doctors removed a piece of shrapnel from Saleh's eye Sunday, the source said. Another piece of shrapnel remained in his leg.

Another hospital official said Saleh intends to conduct a press conference in Riyadh after his recovery, but provided no details about when Saleh would be released or whether he plans to return to Yemen.

The source of the explosion, which killed several guards and the mosque's imam and injured several other government officials at the compound, remains unknown. The already-troubled country has been the scene of a popular uprising calling for Saleh's ouster.