Saudi Arabia bombs Yemen port city over UAE weapons shipment for separatists

Saudi Arabia bombed Yemen’s port city of Mukalla on Tuesday after a weapons shipment from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) arrived for separatist forces in the war-torn country, and warned that it viewed Emirati actions as “extremely dangerous”.

The bombing followed tensions over the advance of Emirates-backed separatist forces known as the Southern Transitional Council (STC).

The council and its allies issued a statement supporting the UAE’s presence, even as others allied with Saudi Arabia demanded that Emirati forces withdraw from Yemen in 24 hours’ time.

The UAE called for “restraint and wisdom” and disputed Riyadh’s allegations against it. It did not say whether it would withdraw.

The confrontation threatened to open a new front in Yemen’s decade-long war, with forces allied against the Iranian-backed Houthi rebels possibly turning their sights on each other in the Arab world’s poorest nation.

It further strained ties between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, neighbours on the Arabian Peninsula that increasingly have competed over economic issues and regional politics, particularly in the Red Sea area.

Tuesday’s airstrikes and ultimatum appeared to be their most serious confrontation in decades.

“I expect a calibrated escalation from both sides. The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council is likely to respond by consolidating control,” Mohammed al-Basha, a Yemen expert and founder of the Basha Report, a risk advisory firm, said.

“At the same time, the flow of weapons from the UAE to the STC is set to be curtailed following the port attack, particularly as Saudi Arabia controls the airspace.”

A military statement carried by the state-run Saudi Press Agency announced the strikes on Mukalla, which it said came after ships arrived there from Fujairah in the UAE.

“The ships’ crew had disabled tracking devices aboard the vessels, and unloaded a large amount of weapons and combat vehicles in support of the Southern Transitional Council’s forces,” the statement said.

“Considering that the aforementioned weapons constitute an imminent threat, and an escalation that threatens peace and stability, the Coalition Air Force has conducted this morning a limited airstrike that targeted weapons and military vehicles offloaded from the two vessels in Mukalla,” it added.

It was not clear if there were any casualties.

The Emirati foreign ministry hours later denied it shipped weapons but acknowledged it sent the vehicles “for use by the UAE forces operating in Yemen”.

It also claimed Saudi Arabia knew about the shipment ahead of time.

The ministry called for “the highest levels of co-ordination, restraint and wisdom, taking into account the existing security challenges and threats”.

The Emirati defence ministry later said it would withdraw its remaining troops from Yemen over “recent developments and their potential repercussions on the safety and effectiveness of counter-terrorism operations”.

It gave no timeline for the withdrawal. The UAE broadly withdrew its forces from Yemen years earlier.

Yemen’s anti-Houthi forces not aligned with the separatists declared a state of emergency on Tuesday and ended their co-operation with the UAE.

They issued a 72-hour ban on border crossings in territory they hold, as well as entries to airports and seaports, except those allowed by Saudi Arabia.

The Southern Transitional Council’s AIC satellite news channel aired footage of the strike’s aftermath but avoided showing damage to the armoured vehicles.

“This unjustified escalation against ports and civilian infrastructure will only strengthen popular demands for decisive action and the declaration of a South Arabian state,” the channel said.