New Yemen President Takes Oath of Office

Posted February 25th, 2012 at 4:00 am (UTC-5)
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Yemen's longtime vice president, Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, has been officially sworn-in as the country's new leader, replacing Ali Abdullah Saleh in a power transfer deal aimed at ending a year of instability.

Mr. Hadi took the oath of office during a ceremony at parliament Saturday.

In his televised speech, Mr. Hadi pledged to continue the fight against al-Qaida and bring those displaced by Yemen's crisis back to their homes.

Mr. Hadi received more than 99 percent of the votes cast in this week's single-candidate presidential election, which will see him preside over a two-year transition period. The handover cements a U.S. and Gulf-backed power transfer deal under which Mr. Saleh agreed to step down in return for immunity.

Mr. Saleh arrived back in Sana'a early Saturday after receiving medical treatment in the United States for injuries suffered during an assassination attempt. He is expected to formally hand over power during a ceremony at the presidential palace Monday.