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Saudi Arabia on Wednesday said the leader of a separatist movement in Yemen “fled” to an unknown location after saying he would travel to the kingdom for negotiations over the future of southern Yemen.
A statement from Maj General Turki al-Malki, a spokesperson for a Saudi-led coalition in Yemen, represents the latest twist in tensions between it and the Southern Transitional Council (STC), backed by the United Arab Emirates.
Al-Malik said the council’s leader, Aidarous al-Zubaidi, had been due to take a flight to Saudi Arabia. But while other council officials took the flight, he said al-Zubaidi did not.
“The legitimate government and the coalition received intelligence indicating that al-Zubaidi had moved a large force – including armoured vehicles, combat vehicles, heavy and light weapons, and ammunition,” al-Malki said. Al-Zubaidi “fled to an unknown location.”
There was no immediate comment from the council, known by the acronym STC.
The confusion over al-Zubaidi’s whereabouts came as the Saudi-led coalition said it had undertaken “limited pre-emptive strikes” in Yemen to stop the UAE-backed separatists from expanding the conflict.
Domestic sources and sources within the STC reported more than 15 strikes in the province, the birthplace of al-Zubaidi.
Following the developments, the Saudi-backed presidential council stripped al-Zubaidi of his membership and referred him to the public prosecutor on charges including high treason, state news agency SABA said.
The decision, issued by the council chair, Rashad al-Alimi, accused al-Zubaidi of inciting armed rebellion, attacking constitutional authorities and committing abuses against civilians in southern Yemen.
For years, the STC has been part of Yemen’s internationally recognised government.
The feud between the UAE and Saudi Arabia has fractured a coalition originally created to fight the Iran-aligned Houthis, who are still the dominant military force in Yemen.
The Houthis seized the Yemeni capital of Sana’a in 2014 and Gulf countries intervened the following year in support of the internationally recognised government, splitting Yemen into rival zones of control.
With Reuters and Agence France-Presse
