Yemen's Hadi holds onto own 'legitimacy'

Yemen’s resigned President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi on Saturday insisted that he still was Yemen’s legitimate president.

In his first statement from the southern province of Aden following his escape from capital Sanaa, where he was under house arrest, Hadi said all decisions taken by the Shiite Houthi group since Sept. 21 of 2014 were “null” and “illegitimate.”

He called on the national dialogue authority of his country to convene in Aden or the southern province of Taiz.

Hadi added that he would only abide by a Gulf initiative for solving the political crisis in Yemen and also the results of his country’s national dialogue.

He called on ending the house arrest of his Prime Minister, Khaled Bahah, as well as other government officials.

Hadi, who was under house arrest by his country’s Shiite Houthi group, managed to escape Yemeni capital Sanaa earlier on Saturday to the southern city of Aden.

According to sources close to Hadi, he had disguised himself and left his home without the knowledge of the Houthis.

The Yemeni leader resigned last month after the Houthis seized control of Sanaa’s presidential compound, following clashes with presidential guards.

The Houthi group seized control of capital Sanaa in September and has since sought to expand its influence to other parts of the country.

Earlier this month, the Houthis issued a “constitutional declaration”, dissolving Yemen’s parliament and establishing a 551-member “transitional council.”

The declaration was rejected by most of Yemen’s political forces – along with some neighboring countries – which described it as a “coup against constitutional legitimacy.”