Hadi stepped down just after Prime Minister Khaled Baha had offered his government’s resignation saying it did not want to be dragged into “an unconstructive political maze.”

Baha was apparently referring to a stand-off between the president and the Houthis – a powerful Shia movement whose gunmen are in position outside his residence.

The Yemeni parliament is rejecting Hadi’s resignation, according to Saudi-owned news channel Al Arabiya.

READ MORE: Gulf states denounce rebel 'coup' in Yemen