MOSCOW, January 22 (Sputnik) — Yemen’s parliament will vote on President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi’s resignation during an emergency session on Saturday, a local parliament source told Sputnik on Thursday.
“The parliament will hold an emergency meeting on Saturday where President Hadi’s resignation letter will be read and voted on in accordance with constitutional procedures,” the source said.
In case of the president’s resignation, “the parliament speaker will act as head of state until early presidential elections are held," the source added.
Hadi’s resignation letter was submitted an hour after Yemen’s cabinet offered its resignation amid a standoff with Houthi insurgents.
The Houthis, a Zaidi Shiite insurgent group, have seized parts of Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, and organized major anti-government rallies in recent months, protesting against what they believe to be widespread discrimination. The group was also involved in removing former Yemeni leader Ali Abdullah Saleh from office in 2012.
Tensions in the country flared last Saturday after Hadi's chief of staff was kidnapped with two of his guards by the rebels. Ongoing clashes between government forces and fighters have been reported across the Yemeni capital since early Monday.
