STC loots weapons in Aden as pro-Saudi forces advance

ADEN, Jan. 06 (YPA) – Aden city in southern Yemen is experiencing widespread unrest on Tuesday, as UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) factions began looting weapons from local military camps to secure their positions ahead of potential airstrikes by the Saudi-led coalition, amid the advance of Riyadh-loyal Dera al-Watan forces toward Abyan province.

This coincided with the advance of the forces of the Dera al-Watan towards Abyan province.

According to local and media sources, the STC factions carried out organized looting of weapons from the Al-Madwar camp in the Tawahi district led by Awsan Al-Anshali, the Badr camp led by Ahmed Hassan Al-Marhabi, in addition to the government headquarters in Al-Maashiq Palace. The weapons were transferred to unknown locations to avoid being targeted by Saudi fighter jets.

The sources confirmed that Dera al-Watan forces have reached Zinjibar, the provincial capital of Abyan, and have deployed across military camps as well as security and civilian facilities, while local authorities expressed support for the Saudi measures targeting UAE-affiliated factions.

Saudi Arabia had managed over the past days to expel the Emirati-backed factions from Hadramout and Mahra, before heading to take control of Shabwa province, while Dera al-Watan forces intended to go to control the rest of the STC-held provinces in the coming days.

AA