Trending:Khaleda Zia deathPutin residence attackHindus in BangladeshAviva Baig2025 year enderBattle of Galwan rowUAE to pull remaining forces out of Yemen after Saudi ultimatumFP News Desk • December 30, 2025, 23:18:11 ISTWhatsapp Facebook TwitterThe UAE on Tuesday said it would withdraw its remaining forces from Yemen after Saudi Arabia issued a 24-hour demand for their exit, as tensions rose over a major offensive by separatist forces backed by Abu DhabiAdvertisementSubscribe Join Us+ Follow us On GoogleChoose Firstpost on GoogleSmoke rises in the aftermath of a Saudi-led coalition airstrike, which targeted what it described as foreign military support to UAE-backed southern separatists, in Yemen's southern port of Mukalla, in this screengrab from a handout video obtained by Reuters on Tuesday. ReutersThe United Arab Emirates on Tuesday said it would withdraw its remaining forces from Yemen after Saudi Arabia issued a 24-hour demand for their exit, as tensions rose over a major offensive by separatist forces backed by Abu Dhabi. According to AFP, the UAE defence ministry said it was pulling out its “counter-terrorism teams… of its own volition,” while rejecting allegations that it was behind the separatists’ advance. Earlier in the day, both Yemen’s presidential council and Saudi Arabia — Abu Dhabi’s rival powerbroker in Yemen — called for the immediate withdrawal of Emirati troops. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS ADThe announcement followed pre-dawn air strikes by the Saudi-led coalition against an Emirati shipment at Mukalla port. The coalition said the cargo was carrying weapons for separatist fighters, a claim the UAE strongly denied. More from World Knocked out 'big facility': Trump hints at land strike as Venezuela pressure mounts Saudi Arabia bombs Yemen port after calling strike by ‘brotherly’ UAE ‘dangerous’AFP footage from the port showed dozens of military vehicles and pick-up trucks at the site, with several left burnt out and smouldering as workers doused them with water. The fast-moving developments on Tuesday follow advances this month by the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) across the resource-rich Hadramawt and Mahra provinces, reigniting instability after more than a decade of civil war. The offensive has revived fears of a return to a divided Yemen, with South Yemen having existed as a separate state between 1967 and 1990, while also delivering a setback to already fragile peace talks with Iran-backed Houthi rebels. Quick ReadsView AllChina's Taiwan war game: Domestic compulsion behind 'pushing without provoking' move?US: Court ruling lets Trump admin share immigrant Medicaid details with ICEEmirati forces first entered Yemen as part of the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis, who ousted the internationally recognised government from the capital, Sanaa, in 2014 and went on to seize much of the country. The UAE scaled back most of its military presence in 2019, retaining only a limited force in the government-controlled south, where a complex network of militias continues to exert influence. STORY CONTINUES BELOW THIS AD‘Unreasonable’Its final withdrawal follows a rare public dispute with Riyadh, which accused Abu Dhabi of pressuring STC forces “to conduct military operations” on Saudi Arabia’s southern border.“The steps taken by the UAE are considered highly dangerous,” a foreign ministry statement said, adding: “The Kingdom stresses that any threat to its national security is a red line.”Also on Tuesday, the leader of Yemen’s presidential council dissolved a defence pact with the UAE and declared a 90-day state of emergency. Abu Dhabi denied being behind the separatist advance and insisted the shipment targeted at Mukalla contained only vehicles destined for its own forces. The UAE “condemns the claims made regarding the exertion of pressure or direction on any Yemeni party to carry out military operations”, a statement said. It added: “The shipment in question did not contain any weapons, and the vehic.
