Exiled Yemen president steps aside amid hopes over truce

Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi says a newly established council will lead negotiations with Iranian-backed Houthis

Yemen's exiled president has stepped aside and transferred his powers to a presidential council as international and regional efforts to end the country's long-running civil war gained momentum with a two-month truce.

Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, major players in the conflict, appear to have played a role in Abd Rabbu Mansour Hadi's decision, quickly welcoming it with a pledge of $3bn (2.3bn) in aid. The head of the new council has close ties to Riyadh.