Saudi Arabian airstrikes force UAE-backed separatists to withdraw from a key Yemeni city
By zoeysky // 2026-01-06
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  • Saudi Arabia has forcefully reversed a separatist land grab. After UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) fighters seized control of key eastern provinces in December, Saudi airstrikes forced them to withdraw from the critical port city of Mukalla. Control has been handed back to the Saudi-backed internationally recognized Yemeni government.
  • The incident exposes a major rift in the anti-Houthi coalition. While both Saudi Arabia and the UAE oppose the Houthi rebels, they support rival factions in southern Yemen. Saudi Arabia backs the national government, while the UAE supports the STC, which seeks an independent South Yemen. This friction has now escalated into direct Saudi military action against an Emirati proxy.
  • Control of Mukalla is a major strategic prize. The city is home to a key oil port and an international airport. The surrounding provinces constitute nearly half of Yemen's territory and border Saudi Arabia, making their control a direct security concern for Riyadh.
  • The UAE's strategy focuses on southern security and influence. The UAE has struggled to establish order in areas like Aden, which has allowed militant groups like Al-Qaeda (AQAP) to operate. To secure its interests (including vital shipping lanes), the UAE built up the STC as a proxy, which has also taken control of strategic locations like Socotra Island.
  • The conflict is creating deeper instability. With the STC now concentrated around Aden and calling this an "existential" fight, further conflict in southern Yemen is likely. The coalition is effectively fracturing and fighting itself, which deepens Yemen's humanitarian crisis and makes a unified peace settlement even more difficult to achieve.
In a significant shift of power within Yemen’s complex civil war, fighters from the United Arab Emirates-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) withdrew from the critical port city of Mukalla on Sunday, Jan. 4. This retreat, confirmed by Yemeni state media, follows a series of Saudi Arabian airstrikes targeting the separatist group's positions, marking a dramatic escalation in tensions between the two nominal Gulf allies. The withdrawal hands control of Mukalla, home to the strategic al-Dhabba oil port and al-Rayyan International Airport, back to forces loyal to Yemen’s internationally recognized government. Salem al-Khanbashi, governor of the Hadhramaut province where Mukalla is located, immediately declared that government forces now exercise "full control of all Hadhramaut territory," having expelled STC fighters and begun restoring administrative functions. Pro-government Nation's Shield Forces (NSF) stated they provided a safe corridor for the separatists to withdraw toward the southern city of Aden, allowing them to carry only personal weapons. This development reverses a bold land grab by the STC in mid-December. Amid escalating tensions, the separatist group seized control of both Hadhramaut and the neighboring al-Mahra province after Saudi-backed forces unexpectedly withdrew from their bases in Aden. Together, these two eastern provinces constitute nearly half of Yemen’s territory and share a long border with Saudi Arabia, making their control a paramount security concern for Riyadh. The Saudi airstrikes, which also hit targets in Hadhramaut’s Seiyun city, signify a forceful Saudi response to what it perceives as Emirati overreach. The conflict exposes a deep and growing rift within the coalition that has been fighting Yemen’s Houthi rebels since 2015. BrightU.AI's Enoch explains that while both Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are opposed to the Iran-aligned Houthis, they back different factions on the ground. Saudi Arabia supports the internationally recognized Presidential Leadership Council government. Meanwhile, the UAE funds, arms and trains the STC, which seeks to secede and re-establish an independent South Yemen. The friction turned overt when Saudi Arabia bombed an Emirati shipment in Mukalla’s port. Riyadh publicly condemned the UAE for "pressuring" STC forces to operate along Saudi Arabia’s sensitive southern border, a stark accusation between long-time partners.

Instability allows militant groups to operate

The current state of the UAE-Yemen conflict is now one of indirect confrontation with its coalition partner. The UAE’s primary focus has been on securing southern Yemen, particularly around Aden, where it has struggled to maintain order. This instability has allowed militant groups like Al-Qaeda in the Arabian Peninsula (AQAP), which once controlled Mukalla, and the Islamic State to operate. The UAE’s strategy has also involved cultivating the STC as a proxy to secure its interests, which include monitoring crucial shipping lanes. Notably, the STC seized the strategic island of Socotra in 2020, where both the UAE and Israel have been involved in building military facilities. The STC has signaled willingness to normalize relations with Israel, and its recent announcement of a planned independence referendum followed Israel’s recognition of another UAE-aligned breakaway region, Somaliland. For now, Saudi military intervention has sharply curtailed the STC’s eastern expansion, rolling back its December gains and reasserting the authority of the Riyadh-backed government in a vast swath of territory. However, the underlying conflict between the Saudi and Emirati visions for Yemen’s future remains unresolved. The STC, calling this a "decisive and existential" war, is now concentrated around Aden, setting the stage for further instability in the south, even as the larger war against the Houthis, who control the capital and the Red Sea coast, grinds on. The coalition is not only fractured but actively turning its weapons on itself, deepening Yemen’s tragedy and complicating any path toward a unified peace. Watch this clip about U.S. President Donald Trump's alliance with Saudi Arabia. This video is from the Rick Langley channel on Brighteon.com. Sources include: MiddleEastEye.net AlJazeera.com BBC.com BrightU.ai Brighteon.com
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