Yemeni ex-president dismisses measures by Houthis

Yemen’s ex-president, who has left his home in the capital city of Sana’a, has dismissed all measures taken by the Houthi movement after the Shia revolutionaries gained control of the capital.

“All measures and appointments made since September 21 [last year] are null and illegitimate,” Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi said in a statement released on Saturday after he left Sana’a for Yemen’s southern city of Aden.

The statement, which was signed as the “president of the republic of Yemen,” was Hadi’s first public comment since he, along with the cabinet of Prime Minister Khaled Bahah, stepped down on January 22. However, the Yemeni parliament rejected Hadi’s resignation.

The statement also called on the Houthis, also known as Ansarullah fighters, to relinquish power and leave the capital.

Hadi further noted that he upholds decisions made by the country’s National Dialogue Conference, which was held earlier this month in a bid to seek a peaceful way for the transfer of power in the country by drafting a new constitution.

The former president held a meeting with the security council of Aden province to discuss the situation in the country after he arrived in Aden.

An aide to Hadi said he “remains the legitimate president” of the country, urging the Yemeni army to support him.

The aide also added that the former president will call on parliament to meet in Aden.

Meanwhile, Houthis issued a statement, accusing the former president of working for foreign interests.

“Hadi’s fleeing to Aden was a planned action which will drag the nation to collapse and services foreign powers,” the statement said.

Yemen revolution

In September 2014, the Ansarullah fighters gained control of Sana’a following a four-day battle with army forces loyal to General Ali Mohsen al-Ahmar, the half-brother of the country’s former dictator, Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Before gaining control of the capital, the Houthis had set a deadline for the political parties to put aside differences and fill the power vacuum, but the deadline was missed without any change in the impoverished country’s political scene.

The movement played a key role in the popular revolution that forced Saleh to step down after 33 years of rule.