UAE-funded STC rejects Saudi proposal in Aden

ADEN, Feb. 27 (YPA) – Head of the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC), Aidarus al-Zoubaidi, suspended on Monday his participation in the presidential meetings, in a new escalatory step in southern Yemen.

Media sources reported that Al-Zubaidi rejected a Saudi proposal to hold a meeting with members of the Riyadh-formed Presidential Council, headed by Rashad Al-Alimi, under Saudi sponsorship to discuss the latest developments in the south.

The southern street has witnessed an unprecedented wave of boiling due to the statements of Al-Alimi, which he announced the transfer of the southern case file.

The sources pointed out that Saudi Arabia trying, through the meeting, to end the tension in the south and to normalize the situation before Al-Alimi’s recent statements.

The demands of Al-Zubaidi, who resides in Abu Dhabi, were not known, but leaders in the council had previously threatened to withdraw from power and to declare self-rule in southern Yemen in response to Al-Alimi’s statements.

AA