Presidential elections to be held in Yemen

According to the Reuters, Yemen's President Ali Abdullah Saleh, said on Monday he was committed to holding presidential elections, the state news agency reported.

Saleh issued his statement from Saudi Arabia, where he has been for medical treatment since an assassination attempt in June, saying the vote should be held as soon as possible.

The statement reads that it is required to “…arrange to hold general and free and direct elections for the new president of the republic."

Reuters reports that on Aug. 16, Saleh said he would "soon" go back to Yemen from Saudi Arabia where he is recovering from the assassination attempt at his palace, reiterating he would hand over power "via elections, not via coups".

"In the shortest time possible we will find many constitutional ways which will help us to overcome this dangerous phase of the history of our people and which has come to threaten our unity and our freedom and our democracy," SABA quoted Saleh as saying in Monday's statement.

The opposition had previously refused to talk to the government until Saleh signed the transition plan.