Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi took the constitutional oath to become Yemen's new president today, formally removing Ali Abdullah Saleh from power after a year of protests that paralysed the impoverished Arabian Peninsular country.
Mr Hadi, who stood as the sole candidate to replace Mr Saleh in a power transfer deal brokered by Gulf neighbours and backed by Western powers, was voted in after more than 60 percent of eligible voters had taken part in an election this week.
Mr Saleh's departure makes him the fourth Arab autocrat to be removed from power in more than a year of mass uprisings that have redrawn the political map of the Middle East.
After taking the oath, Mr Hadi said in a speech that Yemen must draw a line under the crisis and tackle pressing issues such as Yemen's economic problems and bringing those displaced by the crisis back to their homes.
"If we don't deal with challenges practically, then chaos will reign," he said.
Meanwhile a car containing explosives blew up while trying to attack a presidential palace in sthe south of the4 country, killing at least 26 people and injuring several others, according to witnesses and medics.
The attack, apparently by a suicide bomber, happened in Hadramout, far from the capital Sanaa where Mr Hadi took his oath of office.Yemen's south is a turbulent region where secessionists are seeking to revive a socialist southern state and where an active wing of al Qaeda has taken root. No group has yet claimed responsibility for the attack.
Yemen's richer neighbours, led by Saudi Arabia, crafted the power transfer to Mr Hadi, also backed by Washington and a UN Security Council resolution, to ease out Mr Saleh, who had ruled Yemen for 33 years. There are fears that chaos in Yemen could empower the country's branch of al Qaeda near major oil shipping routes.
Mr Hadi now is tasked with overseeing a proposed two-year political transition that envisions parliamentary elections, a new constitution and restructuring of the military in which Saleh's son and nephew still hold power.
The international community described the oath as a key step forward.
"Yemenis want an end to the crisis, and to turn a new page. Now it's time to rebuild, for consensus and concord... and to bring people into an inclusive political process," said Jamal Benomar, UN envoy to Yemen.
The US ambassador to Yemen, Gerald Feierstein, said: "We are seeing the beginning of a process that I believe will deliver great results over the next two years."
Mr Hadi's inauguration ceremony is scheduled for Monday, which Mr Saleh is to attend. Mr Saleh returned to Yemen on Friday after seeking treatment in the United States for injuries suffered in a assassination attempt last year.
A high election turnout was deemed crucial to Mr Hadi's legitimacy, but the vote was rejected in advance in wide swathes of the country, notably the south, where secessionists urged a boycott.
One of the poorest countries in the Middle East, Yemen had already been fractured before the revolt against Mr Saleh's rule, with separatists in the south, Shia rebels in the north and an active wing of al Qaeda.
Some 42 per cent of the population of 23 million live on less than $2 per day in a land where tribal loyalties remain central to society.
"If Abd-Rabbu Hadi doesn't rein in the mashayikh (tribal notables) then we'd be better off with Ali Abdullah Saleh," said Amin al-Sharaby, 24, after gunmen loyal to a tribal leader scuffled with bystanders outside door of parliament, and beat a man with the butts of their rifles.
Agencies