Leaders of Yemen’s Saudi-backed government are reportedly preparing to flee from Aden as fighters from the armed wing of a political movement demanding secession for southern Yemen seized large parts of the city after three days of fighting.
The Southern Transitional Council has been seeking secession from the rest of Yemen for years. Until recently it received support from the United Arab Emirates, causing a fracture in the Saudi-UAE alliance that intervened in Yemen against Houthi rebels who captured the north of the country.
In recent days, leaders in the UAE have been calling on the STC to accept a ceasefire. Last week, the STC gave President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi’s government an ultimatum – either dismiss the prime minister, Ahmed bin Daghr, and his cabinet or face being overthrown.
The STC accused Hadi’s government of “rampant corruption” resulting in a “deteriorating economic, security and social situation never before witnessed in the history of the south”.
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