Sanaa , Yemen ( CNN ) -- The Yemeni cabinet has approved the draft of a law that will give President Ali Abdullah Saleh and his aides immunity from prosecution . The draft was submitted to parliament for approval and is expected to be approved within days , said Yahya al-Arasi , a senior vice presidential aide . Ghaleb al-Odaini , the spokesman for the opposition Joint Meeting Parties ( JMP ) , said the law will pass but expect lawmakers to make changes to it before approving it . Under the terms of a Gulf Cooperation Council-brokered deal , Saleh has agreed to step down as president on February 21 in exchange for immunity from prosecution . The law , if approved in its current form , will also give immunity to officials who worked under Saleh during his 33-year rule . A day after the draft was approved , thousands of protesters rallied Monday in more than a dozen provinces against the proposal . Some waved banners that showed a picture of Saleh holding a butcher knife in his bloodied hands . Others , however , saw the merit in the proposal . `` We are against the immunity bill , but it will play a big role in ending the Saleh family rule in Yemen and give us a chance to build a new nation , '' said Abdullah al-Kuraimi , a youth activist in Sanaa . Yemen 's Prime Minister Mohammed Basendowah defended the immunity bill saying that it will help Yemen avoid violence through the immunity . `` We granted President Saleh immunity to rid the country from a civil war or possible bloodshed , '' he said . He said it was a necessary political solution . `` For those who think a revolution can force Saleh out of power , they can try , '' he said . Senior Saleh aides said the president will head to Saudi Arabia for medical treatment after he steps down . Meanwhile , parliamentarians argued vehemently Monday with Saleh 's aides refusing to accept Vice President Abdu Rabu Hadi as the unified candidate for the February 21 presidential elections . Sultan Barakani , the head of the ruling General People Congress bloc in parliament , said discussions on Hadi should be delayed until February , giving time for Saleh 's immunity law to pass . Aides to Hadi have accused Saleh -- both of whom are in the same political party -- of being behind the rising tensions , whether by sitting quietly as his supporters chastised Hadi or siding against the vice president . The vice presidential aides said that Saleh and his supporters appear unhappy with Hadi 's actions in recent months , including his steadily decreasing the powers of the president and his most ardent loyalists .
NEW : Prime Minister says the immunity bill will help Yemen avoid bloodshed . NEW : Lawmakers argue about nominating Hadi as their presidential candidate . Parliament will have to approve the draft for it to become law . Thousands protests in provinces against the proposal .