Chandigarh, Jan 2: Saudi-led coalition fighter jets carried out air strikes on positions held by Yemen’s UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council in the eastern province of Hadramaut on Friday, as tensions escalated between rival factions opposed to the Houthi movement.
Yemen’s Information Ministry said the strikes targeted STC forces accused of ambushing government troops during the handover of military sites in the province.
“The armed groups attacked government units along their routes of advance,” the ministry said, adding that the strikes were carried out to counter the assaults.
Hadramaut Governor Salem al-Khanbashi said the coalition intervened after armed groups attacked “Dera’ al-Watan” units during what he described as a peaceful deployment aimed at restoring state authority.
“These attacks forced the coalition to intervene,” al-Khanbashi said, stressing that the operation was intended to retake military bases without targeting civilians or political groups.
He urged residents of Hadramaut to avoid interfering with the movement of government forces and warned against steps that could further inflame tensions.
The STC said the air strikes killed and wounded an unspecified number of people. A senior STC official said seven strikes hit a camp in the Al-Khasah area of Hadramaut and claimed STC fighters repelled a subsequent ground assault. There was no immediate confirmation from Saudi Arabia, though the official said the raids were carried out by the kingdom.
The air strikes came hours after al-Khanbashi announced that Yemeni forces loyal to the Saudi-backed, internationally recognised government were preparing to push STC forces out of parts of Hadramaut in what he termed a “peaceful operation.”
Tensions rose further after Saudi Arabia accused STC chief Aidarus al-Zubaidi of blocking a Saudi aircraft carrying an official delegation from landing in Aden, leading to the suspension of airport operations.
Saudi ambassador to Yemen Mohammed al-Jaber said Aden airport was closed following directives from STC leadership. “This is a dangerous escalation that undermines political and security coordination,” he said.
The STC later confirmed that operations at Aden airport had been suspended. The airport serves as one of Yemen’s few functioning gateways outside Houthi control, with flights to Saudi Arabia, Egypt and Jordan.
Yemen has been gripped by conflict since 2014, when the Houthi movement seized the capital, Sanaa, drawing regional powers into the war. The latest clashes underscore growing divisions within Yemen’s anti-Houthi camp.
