The UAE pulls its remaining troops from Yemen following a Saudi demand, escalating tensions over a separatist offensive in the resource-rich south.
AL MUKALLA: The United Arab Emirates announced it is withdrawing its remaining forces from Yemen after Saudi Arabia demanded a pullout within 24 hours.
The UAE defence ministry stated it was removing “counter-terrorism teams…of its own volition” amid escalating tensions over a separatist advance.
Yemen’s presidential council and Saudi Arabia had both demanded the Emirati troops leave.
US Secretary of State Marco Rubio discussed the Yemen situation with his Saudi and Emirati counterparts.
Before dawn, the Saudi-led coalition struck an Emirati shipment at Mukalla port, alleging it carried weapons for separatists, a claim the UAE denied.
Footage showed dozens of parked military vehicles at the port, several burnt out and smouldering.
The events follow a sweeping offensive by UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council forces across Hadramawt and Mahra provinces this month.
The advance threatens to revive the former state of South Yemen and derails peace talks with Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
Emirati troops initially arrived as part of the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis, who seized Sanaa in 2014.
The UAE pulled out most forces in 2019, leaving a limited presence in the government-run south.
The final withdrawal follows a rare public dispute, with Riyadh accusing Abu Dhabi of pressuring separatists to conduct operations on Saudi Arabia’s border.
A Saudi foreign ministry statement called the UAE’s steps “highly dangerous” and a threat to national security.
Also on Tuesday, Yemen’s presidential council leader dissolved a defence pact with the UAE and declared a 90-day state of emergency.
Abu Dhabi denied directing the separatist advance and insisted the targeted shipment contained only vehicles for its own forces.
A UAE statement condemned claims it pressured any Yemeni party to carry out military operations.
Both the UAE and Saudi Arabia expressed a willingness to engage in dialogue to de-escalate.
A source close to the Saudi military coalition said diplomacy remains an option to stop further escalation.
However, the STC remained defiant, insisting there was “no thinking about withdrawal” from its newly seized positions.
STC spokesman Anwar Al-Tamimi said it was unreasonable to ask the landowner to leave his own land.
He added that the STC is in a defensive position and will respond to any movement against its forces.
Tamimi said Saudi Arabia had moved around 20,000 security forces along its border with Hadramawt.
The STC is a key member of Yemen’s fractious anti-Houthi government alliance.
Mukalla resident Abdullah Bazuhair showed damage to his home from the port strike, with windows blasted out.
He said the children were terrified and called the strikes “unacceptable to God”.
The Saudi-led coalition had warned it would back Yemen’s government in any military confrontation with separatists.
Tuesday’s strike followed reported Saudi air raids on separatist positions in Hadramawt last week.
A Yemeni military official said on Friday that around 15,000 Saudi-backed fighters were massed near the border.
