Yemen's Saleh signs power transfer deal

Yemeni President Ali Abdullah Saleh signed a deal on Wednesday under which he will step down after 33 years in power and 10 months of protests against his rule that brought the country to the brink of civil war. Celebrations erupted in the capital Sanaa as Saleh inked the agreement that made him the fourth leader to be forced from power in 10 months of mass protests that have swept the Arab world.
Yemenis danced in the streets, set off fireworks and waved flags as Saleh finally agreed to step down. Under the agreement, signed with opposition leaders at a ceremony hosted by Saudi King Abdullah at the royal palace in Riyadh, Saleh will immediately transfer his powers to his deputy, Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi. In return he will retain the title of president until a new head of state is elected.
"I declare the turning of a new page in the history of Yemen," Saudi King Abdullah said in a brief statement before the signing ceremony, also attended by Crown Prince Nayef. "Saudi Arabia will remain the best supporter for Yemen," the king added. Hadi would form a new government with the opposition and call an early presidential election within three months.
"This is as honourable an exit as he (Saleh) can get, considering the circumstances," said Ghanem Nusseibeh, a London-based analyst. "But the key thing is how the deal will be implemented and if the coalition government will be strong enough to take charge of the whole country," he added.
The United States and the European Union hailed the accord. "This agreement marks a significant step forward for the Yemeni people in their quest for a unified, democratic, secure and prosperous country," Deputy Spokesman at the US State Department Mark Toner said in Washington.
In Brussels, EU foreign policy chief Catherine Ashton said Saleh's signing of the deal should open the way to national reconciliation and a transition to democracy. "The agreement is only the beginning, but it is a very important beginning. It allows the Yemeni people the much needed hope that their country can turn a page in its history and embrace a new future," she said in a statement.
Saudi state television broadcast live the signing ceremony, where Saleh was shown chatting and sipping traditional coffee with King Abdullah. Saleh spent three months in Riyadh undergoing treatment following an assassination attempt in June. The attempt on Saleh's life came after he ducked out of the deal, which ushered in street battles that devastated parts of his capital Sanaa.
The 69-year-old leader, who has ruled Yemen since 1978, asked Saudi Arabia and members of the UN Security Council to ensure the implementation of the accord, brokered by Yemen's Gulf Arab neighbours. "We aspire with confidence to the brothers in Saudi Arabia ... to review, help and oversee the implementation of the accord and the operational mechanism," he said.
MONTHS OF BLOODSTAINED PROTESTS Hundreds of people have been killed during months of protests seeking Saleh's ouster. The political deadlock has reignited simmering conflicts with separatists and militants, raising fears that Yemen's al Qaeda wing could take a foothold on the borders of Saudi Arabia, the world's top oil exporter. Details of the power transfer deal - drawn up by Yemen's richer neighbours in the six-member Gulf Co-operation Council (GCC) earlier this year, and thwarted by Saleh on three separate occasions - were hammered out by UN envoy Jamal Benomar, with support from US and European diplomats.