Trending:US sanctions billUS seizure of oil tankerICE Minneapolis shootingGreenlandJana NayaganBangladesh T20 World Cup rowSaudi Arabia accuses UAE of smuggling separatist leader out of Yemen, tensions escalateFP News Desk • January 8, 2026, 23:18:45 ISTWhatsapp Facebook TwitterRiyadh said UAE-backed STC chief Aidarous al-Zubaidi fled Yemen under Emirati supervision, deepening a diplomatic rift between the Gulf allies and collapsing the southern separatist pushAdvertisementSubscribe Join Us+ Follow us On GoogleChoose Firstpost on GoogleA billboard displays an image of Aidarous al-Zubaidi, the leader of Yemen's Southern Transitional Council (STC), who, according to the Saudi-backed coalition, fled to an unknown destination, in Aden, Yemen, on Wednesday. ReutersSaudi Arabia on Wednesday accused the United Arab Emirates of smuggling a UAE-backed separatist leader out of Yemen after he failed to appear for crisis talks in Riyadh, escalating tensions between the two Gulf allies. According to The Guardian report, the Saudi-led coalition said Aidarous al-Zubaidi, head of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), fled the Yemeni port city of Aden for Abu Dhabi under Emirati supervision. Saudi officials said his departure deepened an already growing diplomatic rift between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS ADAccording to the coalition, al-Zubaidi travelled by boat to the Emirati-operated port of Berbera in Somaliland before boarding an aircraft to Mogadishu, which was later tracked to a military airport in Abu Dhabi. More from World Why is Berlin’s longest blackout since WWII being linked to terrorism? Watch: French farmers drive tractors into Paris to protest EU–Mercosur trade dealSources within the Southern Transitional Council did not dispute that al-Zubaidi had left Yemen, reported The Guardian. The dispute between Saudi Arabia and the UAE intensified last month after UAE-backed separatist forces swept through southern Yemen and advanced toward the Saudi border, a move Riyadh described as a threat to its national security. Saudi Arabia and the UAE, longtime allies of the United States, had fought alongside each other for years in Yemen against the Iran-backed Houthi movement. A ceasefire agreed in 2022 left the Houthis in control of large parts of northwestern Yemen. Quick ReadsView AllTrump feels the heat as hundreds mourn killing of Renee Good in frigid coldAs Maduro eyes head-of-state immunity, Trump’s Venezuela policy may weaken his case — here’s howSTC in disarraySaudi Arabia, which backs Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council and the internationally recognised government, on Wednesday expelled Aidarous al-Zubaidi and charged him with treason after he failed to travel to Riyadh for talks. His escape effectively collapsed the Southern Transitional Council’s (STC) campaign to declare an independent southern state and expel forces loyal to the recognised government, reviving the pre-1990 north–south divide.
