Issuing a statement on Monday, the ministry said the former president has died.
Earlier, conflicting reports on the fate of Saleh swirled after residents said his house in Sanaa had been bombed.
On Saturday, Saleh called upon the Yemeni armed forces and police not to take orders from the Houthi Ansarullah movement “under any circumstances or at any place” and expressed his intention “to turn a new page” in relations with the Saudi-led coalition if it agreed to end its military aggression against and the blockade on Yemen.
Since November 29, armed clashes sparked by forces loyal to Saleh, have continued against Houthi forces that are at the forefront of a retaliatory war against the Saudi-led military coalition.
Saleh loyalists accuse the Houthi fighters of raiding their bases across Sana’a and beyond, an allegation that the Houthi leader has strongly denied.