KUWAIT CITY, Jan. 24 (Xinhuanet) -- Kuwait's parliament has approved the abdication of the ailing new emir Sheikh Saad al-Abdullah al-Salem al-Sabah on Tuesday, legislators said.

Kuwaiti members of parliament leave after a parliament session in Kuwait Jan. 24. (Xinhua/Reuters)

   The legislators unanimously voted for the removal of Sheikh Saad, who was named Emir of Kuwait after his predecessor Sheikh Jaber Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah died on Jan. 15, Kuwait's National Assembly Speaker Jasem al-Khorafi told reporters.

   The parliament also temporarily transferred the emir's power to the cabinet led by Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah, the top legislator added.

   The approval came shortly before an abdication letter from Sheikh Saad, who has been largely incapacitated by illness for a long time, was received by the parliament, other legislators said.

Kuwait's ailing emir Sheikh Saad al-Abdulla al-Sabah is seen in Kuwait City Sep. 6, 2003. (Xinhua/Reuters)

   The parliament received on Monday a cabinet request for a vote on whether to remove Sheikh Saad, who the cabinet said is no longer fit to carry out his constitutional duties.

   Under the country's Law of Succession, the emir can be removed if he is incapable of carrying out power for health reasons, and the removal will come if it is favored by two-thirds of the legislators.

   The official KUNA news agency reported earlier that Kuwait's ruling al-Sabah family met Prime Minister Sheikh Sabah Al-Ahmad Al-Jaber Al-Sabah on Jan. 20, appealing to him to continue guiding the country and to bring it to "the shore of safety".

   The cabinet has thrown its backing behind the prime minister to become the new ruler.

   However, the prime minister can only be sworn in as new emir after he is named crown prince of the oil-rich country, under the succession law. Enditem