Saleh hands over Yemen reins to successor

Outgoing Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh has formally handed over power to his vice-president, the winner of an uncontested campaign to replace him after 33 years of one-man rule. During a ceremony in the capital Sanaa on Monday, Saleh congratulated Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, his successor, and said he hoped for a peaceful transition of power. He called on "international partners" to support Yemen and said the new government must combat terrorism, especially al-Qaeda, which has used months of fighting to increase its foothold. Hadi said that Yemen faced a "complicated and difficult period" and that the country needed "cooperation" to carry out the terms of a deal brokered by Saudi Arabia and other Gulf nations that would see a new president elected in two years. Saleh, who has steered events in Yemen through his loyalists and extended family and is still seen as controlling the country's affairs, said he would support and stand by Hadi. Hadi, who took the oath of office on Saturday, received 99 per cent of the 6.6 million votes cast in what was arguably a non-optional referendu: The only option on the ballots was a "yes" vote for Hadi. About 25,000 ballots were invalid, the government said. From Al-jazeera