December 30, (THEWILL) — The head of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council (PLC), Rashad al-Alimi, on Tuesday, declared a 90-day nationwide state of emergency, revoking the Joint Defence Agreement between Yemen and the United Arab Emirates (UAE) amid escalating tensions in the country’s south.
Al-Alimi also ordered the withdrawal of UAE military forces from Yemen within 24 hours, according to a presidential decree reported by Yemen’s state news agency, SABA.
In a televised address, the PLC chairman said the emergency measures were necessary to contain rising security threats and preserve Yemen’s sovereignty and territorial integrity. He further announced the closure of all ports and border crossings across the country for an initial period of 72 hours.
The Saudi-backed Presidential Leadership Council currently governs areas under government control in Yemen, which has remained deeply divided by a prolonged civil war with Houthi rebels who control large parts of the north.
Tensions have recently intensified between the government coalition and the Southern Transitional Council (STC), a UAE-backed separatist group pushing for the secession of southern Yemen. The STC has repeatedly defied coalition authority as it seeks to expand control over strategic territories in the south.
On Tuesday, the coalition confirmed it carried out a “limited airstrike” on two vessels at the southern port city of Mukalla, alleging the ships were delivering weapons to the STC.
Amid the crisis, Saudi Arabia weighed in diplomatically. The Saudi Foreign Ministry urged the UAE to immediately withdraw its military forces from Yemen and halt all forms of military and financial support to what it described as local armed actors.
The latest developments highlight growing fractures within the anti-Houthi alliance and raise fresh concerns over Yemen’s already fragile security and political landscape.
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