Saudi, UAE-backed factions agree to share control of Al-Ghaydah airport in Mahra

MAHRA, Dec. 11 (YPA) – Leaders of the pro-UAE and pro-Saudi factions reportedly reached an agreement to divide control over the Al-Ghaydah Airport in Mahra province, eastern Yemen, following armed tensions that nearly escalated into clashes between their elements.

The agreement, reached after the lowering of the Yemeni Republic flag (unity flag), stipulates the following:

• The Western Gate of the airport, including its external and internal entrances and associated residential facilities, will be handed over to the pro-UAE Southern Transitional Council (STC) factions.
• The presence of the pro-Saudi Salafist factions, known as “Dera Al-Watan,” will be confined to the remaining facilities of the airport.

This deal comes just days after the STC-aligned forces seized camps in Hadramout province, leading to the closure of Sayoun Airport—a move understood to be part of a broader Emirati-Saudi understanding. Consequently, Sayoun becomes the second airport closed in Hadramout, following Al-Riyan Airport in Mukalla city, which Emirati forces had previously converted into a joint military base.

In a related development, the pro-Saudi “Preparatory Committee for the Unified Council of Eastern Provinces” warned against attempts by the UAE-backed STC to impose a new reality by force on the people of Yemen’s eastern provinces, describing such efforts as a threat to national unity.

YPA