Yemen’s separatist Southern Transitional Council announces its dissolution 

Yemen’s main southern separatists ‍have decided to dissolve following talks in Saudi Arabia, the secretary-general of the organisation has announced.

Some ‍members of ⁠the Southern Transitional Council (STC) were in Riyadh for talks on ending the turmoil ​in ‌southern Yemen on Friday.

STC Secretary-General Abdulrahman Al-Subaihi said in a broadcast on Yemeni television that the dissolution of the group was taken to preserve peace and security in the south and in neighbouring countries.

He praised “the measures taken by the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the solutions it has provided that meet the needs of the people of the South”.

The move could ease the feud between Saudi Arabia and the UAE that came to light after the STC, which Riyadh says is backed by Abu Dhabi, launched an offensive against Saudi-backed Yemeni government troops in December.

On Thursday, the Saudi Arabia-led coalition in Yemen said the STC leader Aidarous ‌al-Zubaidi had fled to the UAE via Somaliland after skipping the talks in Riyadh, accusing the UAE of smuggling him out of the country.

More to come…