Aden, 03 January (H.S.): Yemen's UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) unveiled a bold two-year roadmap to independence for a sovereign South Arabia on Friday, calling for international mediation with Houthi-held northern Yemen even as Saudi-led coalition airstrikes killed 20 STC fighters at two Hadramawt province bases, escalating a proxy rift between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi.

STC president Aidaros al-Zubaid (also spelled Alzubidi), addressing the nation from Aden, declared the transitional phase commencing immediately, culminating in a January 2, 2028, referendum on self-determination—unless thwarted by aggression, triggering instant secession mirroring South Yemen's 1967-1990 sovereignty.

The bombshells detonated hours after pro-Saudi Hadramawt governor Salem al-Khanbashi announced a peaceful operation to reclaim military sites from STC grasp without targeting civilians or escalating war, following the separatists' unopposed December sweep of oil-rich Hadramawt—abutting Saudi Arabia—and neighbouring Mahra on Oman's border.

STC commander Mohammed Abdulmalik reported seven strikes pummelling al-Khasha camp in Wadi Hadramaut, slaying 20 and wounding over 20, with further barrages rocking Seiyun's airport and base—witnesses describing flashes and explosions chasing fighters amid ambushes that felled two STC troops earlier.

An STC spokesman framed the clashes as an existential crusade against Saudi proxies' radical Islamism, a UAE bugbear, while a Saudi source vowed relentless raids until withdrawal. The gambit shreds fragile unity in Yemen's anti-Houthi front: the Aden-based Presidential Leadership Council (PLC)—fractious coalition of STC, Islah Islamists, and others—rejects the ploy as treasonous, with Rashad al-Alimi previously threatening legal action against ministers echoing independence chants.

Riyadh, spearheading the 2015 coalition nominally including UAE to oust Iran-aligned Houthis from Sanaa, fumed over STC's advance—triggering Tuesday strikes on an alleged UAE arms shipment at Mukalla port—prompting Abu Dhabi to confirm full troop withdrawal Friday, recommitting to dialogue, de-escalation, and internationally supported processes.

Reviving South Yemen's pre-1990 borders, al-Zubaid's edict—echoing May 2017 STC founding and 2019 self-rule bid post-Riyadh Agreement collapse—invites north-south talks but prioritises southern sovereignty, potentially partitioning Yemen anew amid Houthi dominance and stalled UN peace.

The UAE's shadow looms: post-2019 drawdown, its proxies control key ports and oil fields, irking Riyadh's vision of unitary Yemen under PLC. As coalition jets patrol, analysts warn of splintered south fuelling Houthi resurgence or Gulf proxy war redux, dooming fragile truces.

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Hindusthan Samachar / Jun Sarkar