CAIRO, Mar 26 (Aswat Masriya) - Yemeni President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi is flying to the Egyptian resort city of Sharm el-Sheikh on Thursday to attend the Arab League summit "under Saudi protection", sources told gulf broadcaster al-Arabiya TV.

The president, who called for an Arab intervention in his country to halt the Shi'a Houthis advances', will return back to Aden after attending the summit.

Saudi Arabia launched military operations in its conflict-torn neighbour Yemen early Thursday as part of a coalition that includes 9 other countries.

The operations come after the Houthis, a Shi'a rebel movement which has controlled Sanaa since last September, made advances onto the Yemeni South on Wednesday.

In January, the Houthis took control of the Yemeni presidential palace after fighting with presidential guards and have since forced Hadi to flee the capital.

Hadi and his administration initially stepped down but he later went to the coastal city of Aden in south Yemen in February, where he claimed he remains the rightful president of Yemen. Saudi Arabia says military operation is in response to an appeal from Hadi.

Saudi Arabia, Bahrain, the United Arab Emirates, Kuwait and Qatar said in a joint statement reported by the Saudi state agency that they have decided to respond to a letter by Hadi, in which he called on these five countries and Oman to "provide immediate support, using all necessary means and measures."

Egypt announced early Thursday that it is coordinating with Saudi Arabia over preparations to participate with an Egyptian air and naval force in Yemen, "and a ground force if necessary."

AL Secretary General Nabil al-Arabi stressed the league's "full support" for the Saudi-led operations in Yemen.  

The 26th AL summit is scheduled for Saturday and Sunday. It is the first AL summit to be held in Egypt since the January 2011 uprising which toppled the regime of former President Hosni Mubarak.