Security tensions, armed clashes break up mass rally in Mukalla

HADRAMOUT, April 01 (YPA) – The city of Mukalla, the capital of Hadramout Governorate, witnessed severe security tensions on Wednesday following the eruption of armed clashes that led to the dispersal of a mass rally, amid a state of military mobilization across the city’s streets.

Local sources reported that groups of the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) supporters stormed the site of a rally organized by leadership figures linked to the “Hadramout Tribal Alliance” loyal to Saudi Arabia and sponsored by local authorities. Protesters reportedly tore down banners and official portraits, leading to physical altercations and mutual assaults between the two sides.

The situation escalated on the ground when Saudi-backed security and military forces fired live ammunition to disperse the crowds opposing the event, pursuing them with armed vehicles through several neighborhoods.

Reports indicated casualties on both sides (exact figures have not been confirmed), and a large-scale arrest campaign was carried out targeting many supporters of the STC, in addition to a heavy military deployment at the city’s entrances and exits.

Observers attribute this public outcry to the fallout from previous airstrikes that targeted STC-affiliated forces in the Hadramout Valley late last year. While STC-aligned activists accuse regional and political parties of attempting to fracture the social fabric of Hadramout and practicing “marginalization policies,” local authorities view these protests as an attempt to destabilize the governorate’s security.

YPA