Yemen president quits, throwing country deeper into chaos

Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi resigned on Thursday, just days after Houthi rebels battled their way into his presidential palace, plunging the unstable Arab country deeper into chaos and depriving Washington of a key ally against al Qaeda, Reuters reported.

Hadi, a former general, blamed the Houthis' control of Sanaa for impeding his two-year-long attempt to steer Yemen toward stability after years of secessionist and tribal unrest, deepening poverty and U.S. drone strikes on Islamist militants.

The announcement startled the Arabian Peninsula country of 25 million, where the Iran-backed Houthis emerged as the dominant faction by seizing the capital in September and dictating terms to a humiliated Hadi.

"This is a coup," said Ahmed al-Fatesh, a hotel security supervisor, suggesting Hadi had been bullied from office. "The Houthis took power by force. Hadi is a legitimate president and was elected by more than 6 million Yemenis. Hadi tried to bring the political forces together."

The Houthi movement said it had no official reaction as yet to Hadi's resignation, but urged Yemenis to stage mass rallies to show their support on Friday afternoon.

A statement urged the army to "uphold" its responsibilities and called on Houthi fighters to be on alert.