The ruling General People's Congress (GPC) was leading the early results in Yemen's parliamentary elections, the government electoral commission revealed. "First indications are that the GPC is leading the results," commission spokesman Abdu Janadi said Monday, giving no further details.

President Ali Abdullah Saleh's GPC was followed by the Islamist opposition Al-Islah Party and the Yemeni Socialist Party (YSP), Jenadi told reporters.

Official results were expected to start coming in later.

The electoral commission had given polling stations 72 hours from the close of balloting at 1500 GMT on Sunday to submit their results, taking into account the isolation of some stations in Yemen's rugged hinterland.

The GPC held 226 of the 301 seats in the outgoing parliament, with Al-Islah and the YSP holding 62 and two seats respectively. The remainder went to independents and members of the Baath Party.

High Turn out Reported

Yemeni TV reported a high turnout in the vote, which was monitored by several hundred foreign observers, including a number from the United States and the European Union.

Correspondents say outsiders will want to see if the election confirms a trend favoring Islamic political parties in the Arab world.

Yemen is home to many radical Muslim groups and sympathizers of Osama Bin Laden's al-Qaeda network.

Elections Marred by Clashes But Generally Peaceful

Yemen's third general election since reunification in 1990 has passed off largely free of trouble.

At least one person was wounded in shootings involving supporters of rival candidates - but Sunday's vote appears to have escaped the serious bloodshed, which marred previous ballots.

President Ali Abdullah Saleh had called for an incident-free.

Correspondents say the clashes on Sunday mainly involved supporters of the NCP and the Islamic Reform Party (or Al-Islah).

One soldier was seriously wounded when the army tried to stop one incident.

But during the municipal elections of 2001, 29 people were killed in a country where many people carry arms.

Experts believe there are some 60 million firearms in the country - three for each Yemeni.

PHOTO CAPTION

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh stands outside a polling station in Sanaa. Saleh's ruling General People's Congress (GPC) party was leading Yemen's parliamentary elections. (AFP/File/Ragih Moghrabi)