ADEN, Yemen, April 12 (Xinhua) -- The Yemeni presidential council newly formed by President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi brings hope of positive changes to the war-ravaged country as it vowed to advance peace talks and improve the national economy paralyzed by the ongoing civil war.
Hadi announced Thursday in the Saudi Arabian capital of Riyadh that he has handed over all his powers to the Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) that will succeed him in running the government and holding peace talks with the Houthi militia.
In Yemen's southern port city of Aden and neighboring provinces, local residents welcomed the transition of power and the founding of a new presidential system.
"People in Aden and other major provinces are in harsh living conditions due to the years-long conflict, now we have a representative to transfer our voices and hopes to the supreme authority," Mohamed Ban Khaled, an Aden resident, told Xinhua.
"Giving the Southern Transitional Council (STC) and the (Yemeni) National Resistance a chance in ruling the country through the presidential council is a very significant step that will achieve stability in major Yemeni provinces," Khaled added.
The STC is a powerful Yemeni political faction that fully controls most of the country's southern provinces including Aden. It fought along with the National Resistance and other pro-government forces against the Houthis in the Yemeni war.
Meanwhile, the Yemeni riyal gained almost 14 percent in the local currency market two days after the announcement of the new leadership, a rare uptick for the country's currency that has lost more than half of its value since the start of the war.
Traders confirmed to Xinhua that the riyal continued to climb this week, reaching 950 riyals against 1 U.S. dollar in the government-controlled areas, after increasing from 1,070 riyals against 1 dollar a week earlier.
The Yemeni presidential council of eight members is headed by Rashad Mohammed Al-Alimi, an advisor to Hadi and former interior minister under the late President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Al-Alimi is known for close ties with various factions in Yemen as well as with Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
Other members include Aidarous Zubaidi, the head of the STC, Sheikh Sultan Al-Aradah, the governor of the oil-rich Marib Province, and Tariq Saleh, former president Saleh's nephew.
"The STC and the national resistance are two strong military factions that largely involved in fighting the Houthis during the past years, and now the leaders of the two factions are members of the presidential council," said Adel Saleh, a Yemeni military official.
"Achieving peace or continuing the military campaign against Houthis now became choices linked to the STC and the national resistance forces, because they are participating in ruling the country politically and militarily," he added.
On Friday, Rashad Al-Alimi, head of Yemen's newly formed PLC, vowed to work to end the country's devastating conflict and achieve permanent peace.
"This council is a council of peace, not war, but it is also a council of defense, power, and unity, and its mission is to protect the nation's and citizens' sovereignty," Al-Alimi said in his first televised speech broadcast from Saudi Arabia.
The cease-fire between the Houthi militia and the Yemeni government, meant to last two months, came into effect on April 2.
Yemen has been mired in a civil war since late 2014 when the Iran-backed Houthi militia seized control of several northern provinces and forced the Saudi-backed Yemeni government out of Sanaa.
The war has killed tens of thousands of people, displaced 4 million, and pushed the country to the brink of famine. ■
