UAE-Backed Yemen Separatists Claim Saudi Airstrikes Hit Their Positions

Separatists in southern Yemen, operating under the banner of the Southern Transitional Council and supported by the United Arab Emirates, leveled serious accusations against Saudi Arabia on Friday, claiming that the kingdom launched airstrikes targeting their positions in the strategic Hadramout governorate, a move that threatens to unravel the already fragile Saudi-led coalition assembled to counter Iran-backed Houthi rebels in the northern regions of the country.

The Southern Transitional Council reported that its forces came under aerial attack shortly after conducting operations in eastern Hadramout, where they had faced multiple ambushes from unidentified gunmen resulting in the deaths of two fighters and injuries to twelve others, with eyewitness accounts and circulated footage depicting destroyed military vehicles believed to belong to Council-aligned units following the strikes.

Although Saudi officials provided no direct acknowledgment or response to inquiries, a prominent Saudi-owned newspaper referenced informed sources confirming that the airstrikes were deliberately executed as a stern warning to the Council, demanding the immediate withdrawal of its forces from the governorates of Hadramout and Mahra, territories recently overtaken from groups affiliated with the Saudi-backed National Shield Forces.

Also Read: UAE and French Presidents Commit to Deeper Ties in Economy, Energy, and Technology

This confrontation stems from escalating actions earlier in the month when the Council advanced into these eastern provinces, accompanied by symbolic displays of the former South Yemen flag and public rallies in the port city of Aden advocating for renewed secession, developments that followed Saudi Arabia's explicit call on Thursday for the Emirati-backed separatists to vacate the areas and cease further encroachments.

The unfolding crisis underscores deepening strains between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, nominal allies within the coalition yet increasingly divergent in their strategic objectives in Yemen, prompting expressions of concern from the United States, which urged all parties to exercise restraint and prioritize diplomatic channels to avert further destabilization in a nation already enduring one of the world's most severe humanitarian catastrophes.

Also Read: Trump's Christmas: Airstrikes as "Present" to Jihadists and Dark Warnings to Political Rivals