Yemen's ex-president Abdrabbuh
Mansour Hadi has fled the capital, Sanaa, weeks after he was put under
house arrest by Houthi rebels who forced him to resign.
After
arriving in the southern city of Aden, he denounced all actions taken by
the Houthis since they assumed power as "null and illegitimate".
It comes a day after rival parties agreed on the formation of a governing transitional council .
Yemen has been in crisis since the takeover by the Houthis, a Shia group.
In
his statement, which he signed as president, Mr Hadi called for a
national commission to oversee the drafting of a new constitution.
He
also urged world powers "to reject the coup" and called on military and
security forces to protect the constitutional government.
UN mediator Jamal Benomar announced the preliminary accord between
feuding factions on Thursday and hailed it as "an important step".
It
is not clear why Mr Hadi was allowed to leave his home. Aides close to
the former president told the Associated Press news agency that he was
freed after pressure from the United Nations, the US, Russia and local
political parties.
Mr Hadi is said to be at his home in a district of Aden.
Yemen's Houthis
Follow Zaidism, a branch of Shia Islam
Launched an insurgency against the
government in 2004 to fight for greater autonomy in their northern home
province and to protect Zaids
Named after Hussein Badr al-Din al-Houthi, who led the first uprising. His brother Abdul now leads the group
Accused of being proxies for Iran, something both deny
Joined the protests in 2011 that toppled former President Ali Abdullah Saleh
Control much of northern Yemen but their influence is limited elsewhere.
Who are the Houthis? His residence in Sanaa was looted after he left ,witnesses said.
Mr Hadi's supporters in Aden have so far refused to recognise what they denounce as a political coup.
Last
week, the governors of the provinces of Aden, Lahij and Mahra demanded
the reinstatement of Mr Hadi and reaffirmed their support for Yemen
becoming a federation of six regions.
Houthi rebels seized the
capital Sanaa in September, before capturing the presidential palace and
placing Mr Hadi under house arrest. He then quit his presidential post,
saying he could not continue under such pressure.
The Houthis dissolved parliament and installed a five-member "presidential council" on 6 February.
This sparked security concerns that saw several Arab and Western states close their embassies and remove diplomats.
Since overrunning Sanaa, the Houthis have expanded their control to coastal areas and regions south of the capital.
Their
takeover was denounced as a coup by rival political factions and
prompted mass protests, mainly from the country's Sunni majority.
The Houthis have also faced fierce resistance from Sunni tribes and al-Qaeda militants.
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