On Tuesday, Yemen’s new Presidential council was sworn into power in the southern city of Aden. the swearing-in took place a few weeks after a truce between the government and the Houthi rebels began.
The city was patrolled by hundreds of government soldiers while the council of eight-man across the country was sworn-in in the front of the parliament building. The United Nations Special Envoy for Yemen Hans Grundberg attended, along with several European and Arab ambassadors. Before the swearing-in ceremony, Yemen’s Prime Minister Maeen Abdulmalek Saeed arrived in Aden, which serves as the temporary capital of Yemen.
A Yemeni official said, “This is the beginning of a new era for Yemen, the start of the real work towards ending the war, which has been the outcome of the Yemeni talks in Saudi Arabia. We want Yemen to have a new chapter and this is our chance”.
Security reasons prevented the event from being announced in advance. After arriving at Aden Airport from Saudi Arabia, government officials were targeted in a missile attack, resulting in at least 20 deaths.
It remains unclear whether the government and the presidential council will remain in Aden or return to Riyadh, as they have been doing since the beginning of the war.
