Yemen's Saleh Signs Deal to Quit Power
Yemeni President Ali Abdullah signed a deal on Wednesday to hand over his powers after 33 years in office which Saudi King Abdullah hailed as marking a "new page" in the impoverished country's history.
Live footage of the ceremony aired by Saudi state television showed Saleh ink the Gulf- and U.N.-brokered agreement in Riyadh's Al-Yamama royal palace watched over by members of the Yemeni opposition as well as King Abdullah and Gulf foreign ministers.
Representatives of Yemen's ruling party and the opposition also signed the deal which is intended to end 10 months of deadly violence.
But thousands of demonstrators again to took the streets of the Yemeni capital Sanaa on Wednesday to protest against the deal's promise of immunity from prosecution for both Saleh and his family.
A spokesman said they rejected the agreement signed in Riyadh.
The organizing committee of youth protesters said the Gulf-brokered deal "does not concern" protesters, Walid al-Amari told Agence France Presse.
It called for new demonstrations to demand his immediate departure.
Under the agreement, which Saleh had stalled for months in defiance of intense domestic and international pressure, the veteran leader will his hand powers to Vice President Abdrabuh Mansour Hadi in return for immunity from prosecution for himself and his family, although he will remain honorary president for 90 days.
"Today a new page in your history begins," the Saudi king told the Yemeni delegations as they signed the deal.
Saleh pledged "real partnership" with his opponents.
"We welcome partnership with the opposition to manage the country's affairs and rebuild what the crisis has destroyed," Saleh said, stressing that it should be a "real partnership."
Earlier on Wednesday, U.N. chief Ban Ki-moon said Saleh will seek medical treatment in New York after signing the deal.
"He told me clearly that he will hand over all powers," Ban told reporters at the U.N. headquarters as Saleh signed the deal in the Saudi capital.
"He told me that he would come to New York after signing the agreement to have medical treatment," Ban added, giving details of a telephone conversation on Tuesday.
"If he comes to New York I will be happy to meet him," the U.N. secretary general added, saying he was "encouraged by the positive development of the situation in Yemen."
The U.N. Security Council is to meet Monday and U.N. envoy Jamal Benomar will brief the 15 members on the latest events in Yemen, where protests have continued demanding that Saleh face trial.
Ban said that he had telephoned Saleh and "strongly urged" the president, who has been the target of opposition protests since January, to sign the GCC-brokered exit plan.
Ban said the controversial question of immunity from prosecution promised by the GCC was not discussed.
"I understand the arrangement and agreement is that he will still remain as president. But he told me that he will come to New York to take medical treatment immediately after signing this agreement," Ban said.
"I told him that the United Nations will spare no efforts and as the secretary general of the United Nations I will do my best to mobilize the necessary resources and support so that ... peace and stability and democratic order will be restored in Yemen."
Saleh returned to Yemen in September after a three-month absence in Saudi Arabia, where he was treated for wounds sustained in an attack on his palace on June 3.
Source: Agence France Presse
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