Saudi Arabia Asks UAE to Respond to Yemen’s Request and Withdraw Forces Withinh 24 Hours
Riyadh (QNN)- Saudi Arabia called the UAE to respond to a request by Yemen to withdraw its forces from the Yemeni territory within 24 hours, calling its actions a “threat to the Kingdom’s national security and the security and stability” of Yemen. This comes amid reports that Israel plans to recognize the Southern Transitional Council’s forces following the recognition of Somaliland.
On Tuesday, Saudi Arabia bombed Yemen’s port city of Mukalla over what it described as a shipment of weapons for a separatist force there that arrived from the UAE. The kingdom later directly linked the UAE to the separatists’ recent advances in Yemen and warned Abu Dhabi its actions were “extremely dangerous.”
The attack signals a new escalation in tensions between the kingdom and the separatist forces of the Southern Transitional Council, which is backed by the UAE.
In a statement, the Saudi Foreign Ministry expressed its disappointment over the “actions taken by the brotherly United Arab Emirates, pressuring the Southern Transitional Council’s forces to conduct military operations on the southern borders of the Kingdom in the governorates of Hadramout and Al-Mahara.”
Riyadh, the statement said, considered it a “threat to the Kingdom’s national security and the security and stability” of Yemen.
"The Kingdom stresses the importance that the brotherly United Arab Emirates accept the Republic of Yemen’s request for all its forces to leave the Republic of Yemen within twenty four hours, and halt any military or financial support to any party within Yemen," the ministry said.
It stressed that any threat to Saudi Arabia’s national security is a “red line, and the Kingdom will not hesitate to take all necessary steps and measures to confront and neutralize any such threat.”
Rashad al-Alimi, the head of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, the anti-Houthi forces, later declared a state of emergency Tuesday, ending its cooperation with the UAE and ordering all Emirati forces within its territory to evacuate within 24 hours.
It issued a 72-hour ban on all border crossings in territory they hold, as well as entries to airports and seaports, except those allowed by Saudi Arabia.
Meanwhile, Israel officially recognized Somaliland on Friday, a first for the self-declared republic that broke away from Somalia in 1991, in a move condemned internationally.
In response, the leader of Yemen’s Houthi group issued a stark warning to Israel over its recognition. “We consider any Israeli presence in Somaliland a military target for our armed forces, as it constitutes aggression against Somalia and Yemen, and a threat to the security of the region,” Houthi leader Abdul Malik al-Houthi said.
The recognition also drew condemnation from key regional players, including Turkey, Saudi Arabia, Egypt, and Qatar.
Now, Israeli media reports have revealed Israel’s plan to replicate the Somaliland model in southern Yemen.
According to Maariv, Israel aims to recognize the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council and apply the Somaliland approach to Yemen’s southern provinces. Maariv added that legitimizing UAE-aligned militias in southern Yemen would give Israel a direct military and intelligence foothold along the Red Sea coastline, overlooking the strategic Bab al-Mandeb Strait.
Source: AA, Al Jazeera, AP
