The Saudi-led coalition in Yemen has alleged the United Arab Emirates helped smuggle a separatist leader out of the country after he was expelled from Yemen's presidential council and accused of treason. A coalition spokesman said Aidarous al-Zubaidi, head of the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC), fled Aden on Tuesday night in a boat to Somaliland. He was then flown by a cargo aircraft to Abu Dhabi via Mogadishu under the supervision of UAE officers. There was no immediate comment from the UAE or STC. The STC insisted Zubaidi was still working from Aden on Wednesday, after the coalition said he had failed to fly to Riyadh for talks and had fled to an unknown location.

The coalition also accused Zubaidi of moving STC forces from bases in Aden to his home province of al-Dahle and said it had carried out air strikes on them in response. The STC said the strikes, which reportedly killed four people, were 'unjustified' and 'inconsistent' with calls for dialogue with Yemen's internationally recognised government. The coalition spokesman later shared that the departure was facilitated via a St Kitts and Nevis-flagged vessel before heading to Somalia. The events highlight rising tensions in southern Yemen, where STC forces are pushing for independence, further complicating the ongoing civil war that has engulfed the nation for almost a decade.