After 33 years in rule, Yemen’s Ali Abdullah Saleh ceded power to his deputy, making him the fourth Arab leader to step down in a year of mass revolutions.

After 33 years in rule, Yemen’s Ali Abdullah Saleh ceded power to his deputy, making him the fourth Arab leader to step down in a year of mass revolutions.

Standing before a crowd of parliamentarians, tribal leaders and foreign dignitaries at the presidential palace in Sanaa, Saleh formally give power to Abdrabuh Mansur Hadi, pledging to support his efforts to "rebuild" a country still reeling from months of violence.

"I hand over the banner of the revolution, of the republic, of freedom, of security and of stability... to safe hands," said Saleh as he stood beside Hadi and gave a farewell speech carried live on state television.

Hadi will serve for an interim two-year period under a Gulf-brokered transition plan signed by Saleh last November after 10 months of protests demanding his ouster.

Saleh said that he would "stand... by my brother the president of the republic," and urged Yemenis to rally behind Hadi in his fight against "terrorism, first and foremost, Al-Qaeda."
"There is no place for terrorism," he said.

Hadi cautioned that the past year of turmoil that has crippled the economy and unleashed nationwide insecurity was not yet over, and appealed to Yemenis to "cooperate with the new leadership" to help the country emerge from the crisis.

He hoped that Yemen could have a peaceful transition after his two years in office.
"I hope we will meet in this room again... to bid farewell and welcome a new leadership. I hope that in two years, I will stand in President Ali Abdullah Saleh's place and a new president will stand in mine," he said.

Presidential and parliamentary elections will be held at the end of Hadi's two-year term.

The main opposition coalition, the Common Forum, which currently heads the interim government, boycotted Monday's ceremony, saying in a statement late on Sunday that Hadi officially became president after winning the February 21 election, not because Saleh handed him the post.