Yemen's new President takes oath to replace Saleh

PanARMENIAN.Net - Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi took the constitutional oath to become Yemen's new President on Saturday, Feb 25, formally removing Ali Abdullah Saleh from power after a year of protests that paralyzed the impoverished Arabian Peninsular country, Reuters reported.

Hadi, who stood as the sole candidate to replace Saleh in a power transfer deal brokered by Gulf neighbors and backed by Western powers, was voted in after more than 60 percent of eligible voters had taken part in an election this week.

Saleh's departure makes him the fourth Arab autocrat to be removed from power in more than a year of mass uprisings that have redrawn the political map of the Middle East.

After taking the oath, Hadi said in a speech that Yemen must draw a line under the crisis and tackle pressing issues such as Yemen's economic problems and bringing those displaced by the crisis back to their homes.

"If we don't deal with challenges practically, then chaos will reign," Hadi said.

Yemen's richer neighbors, led by Saudi Arabia, crafted the power transfer, also backed by Washington and a UN Security Council resolution, to ease out Saleh, who had ruled Yemen for 33 years. There are fears that chaos in Yemen could empower the country's branch of al Qaeda near major oil shipping routes.