Saudi Arabia calls national security a red line, urges UAE exit from Yemen

Saudi Arabia said on Tuesday that its national security was a red line and backed a call for United Arab Emirates forces to leave Yemen within 24 hours, shortly after a Saudi-led coalition carried out an airstrike on the southern Yemeni port of Mukalla. The warning marked Riyadh’s strongest language yet against Abu Dhabi, as the coalition said it struck what it described as foreign military support to UAE-backed southern separatists. Yemen’s Saudi-backed presidential council head also set a deadline for Emirati forces to leave, urging the UAE to comply. Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates are both major players in the OPEC oil exporters’ group, and any disagreement between the two could hamper consensus on oil output decisions. The group is scheduled to meet virtually on Sunday. Yemen’s presidential council head, Rashad al-Alimi, cancelled a defence pact with the UAE, the Yemeni state news agency said, and accused Abu Dhabi in a televised speech of fuelling internal strife in Yemen through its support for the Southern Transitional Council (STC). “Unfortunately, it has been definitively confirmed that the United Arab Emirates pressured and directed the STC to undermine and rebel against the authority of the state through military escalation,” Alimi said. The UAE’s foreign ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment. Major Gulf stock indexes were trading lower on Tuesday following the escalation in tensions. Offensive brought allies closer to confrontation The UAE was a member of the Saudi-led coalition battling the Iran-aligned Houthi movement in Yemen from 2015. In 2019, it began drawing down its troops but remained committed to the Saudi-backed internationally recognised government. The STC later sought self-rule in the south and this month launched a surprise offensive against Saudi-supported Yemeni government troops, bringing the Gulf allies closer than ever to direct confrontation and risking a renewed civil war. Read More: Saudi-led coalition targets Mukalla dock in Yemen over alleged STC arms delivery The advance broke years of stalemate, with the STC claiming broad control of southern Yemen, including the strategically important province of Hadramout. Saudi Arabia had warned the STC against military moves in Hadramout and demanded the withdrawal of its forces, a call the STC dismissed. Mukalla strike The coalition said a limited airstrike early on Tuesday followed the weekend arrival of two ships from the UAE port of Fujairah, which it said docked at Mukalla on Saturday and Sunday without authorisation. After arriving, the vessels disabled their tracking systems and unloaded large quantities of weapons and combat vehicles to support the STC, the coalition said. Saudi state media published video footage of a ship identified as “Greenland,” which it said came from Fujairah and was used to unload military equipment. The coalition said the strike caused no casualties or collateral damage. Two sources told Reuters the strike targeted the dock where the cargo from the two ships had been unloaded. Reuters could not independently verify what was struck or the nature or origin of the cargo. Footage aired on Yemen’s state television showed black smoke rising from the port and burned vehicles at the site in the early hours after the strike. Following the incident, Alimi imposed a 72-hour no-fly zone and a sea and land blockade on all ports and crossings, except for coalition-authorised exemptions. Hadramout borders Saudi Arabia and has deep cultural and historical ties with the kingdom, with many prominent Saudis tracing their origins to the region. STC rejects orders  Aidarous al-Zubaidi, head of the STC and deputy head of the presidential council, said in a joint statement with three other council members that the UAE remained a key partner in the fight against the Houthis. The statement rejected Alimi’s orders, saying they lacked consensus. “We categorically affirm that no individual or entity within or outside the leadership council has the authority to remove any country from the Arab Coalition,” the statement said. “This is a matter governed by regional frameworks, alliances and international agreements that are not subject to whims or individual decisions.” Since 2022, the STC has been part of an alliance controlling southern areas outside Houthi control under a Saudi-backed power-sharing initiative. The Houthis control northern Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, after forcing the Saudi-backed government to flee south. “We will continue to prevent any military support from any country to any Yemeni faction without coordination with the legitimate government,” the coalition said.

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