Saudi-led coalition says STC’s al-Zubaidi fled to UAE via Somaliland

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Secessionist person took a vessel to Berbera and past boarded a pane that flew to Abu Dhabi via Mogadishu, conjugation says.

The Saudi Arabia-led conjugation successful Yemen has announced that the person of the secessionist Southern Transitional Council (STC) has fled to the United Arab Emirates via Somaliland aft skipping planned bid talks successful Riyadh.

In a connection connected Thursday, the conjugation said Aidarous al-Zubaidi “escaped successful the dormant of night” connected Wednesday aboard a vas that departed Aden successful Yemen for the larboard of Berbera successful Somaliland.

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Al-Zubaidi past boarded a level on with UAE officers and flew to Somalia’s capital, Mogadishu. “The level turned disconnected its recognition systems implicit the Gulf of Oman, past turned it backmost connected 10 minutes anterior to accomplishment astatine Al reef subject airdrome successful Abu Dhabi,” the connection said.

There was nary contiguous remark from the STC oregon UAE.

If confirmed, the determination could deepen the feud betwixt Saudi Arabia and the UAE that came to airy aft the Abu Dhabi-backed STC launched an violative against Saudi-backed Yemeni authorities troops successful December.

The STC – which initially supported Yemen’s internationally recognised authorities against the Houthi rebels successful bluish Yemen – is seeking an autarkic authorities successful confederate Yemen. It seized the provinces of Hadramout and Mahra that borderline Saudi Arabia successful a run that Riyadh described arsenic a reddish enactment for its nationalist security.

The Saudi-led conjugation responded with air strikes connected the Yemeni larboard of Mukalla connected December 30, targeting what it called a UAE-linked weapons shipment, and backed a telephone by the internationally recognised authorities for Emirati forces to retreat from the country.

Abu Dhabi denied that the shipment contained weapons and expressed a committedness to guarantee Riyadh’s security. On the aforesaid day, it announced an extremity to what it called its “counterterrorism mission” successful Yemen.

Yemeni authorities troops, backed by Saudi Arabian aerial attacks, went connected to reclaim Hadramout and Mahra, and the STC said connected Saturday that it would be bid talks hosted by Saudi Arabia.

The Saudi-led conjugation said an STC delegation, excluding al-Zubaidi, departed Yemen for Riyadh successful the aboriginal hours of Wednesday.

The caput of the internationally recognised government’s Presidential Leadership Council, Rashad al-Alimi, has meantime announced that al-Zubaidi has been removed from the assembly for “committing precocious treason”.

Al-Alimi said helium has asked the country’s Attorney General to motorboat an probe against al-Zubaidi and instrumentality ineligible action.