STC leaders warn of strikes on Saudi targets after Aden office shutdown

SHABWA, Feb. 25 (YPA) – Outrage is mounting among leaders of the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) following the closure of its Aden offices by Saudi-backed factions.

The latest escalation came from Sheikh Lahmar bin Ali Laswad, head of the STC’s executive body in Shabwa Governorate, who warned in a post on the social media platform X that economic and strategic Saudi assets could become targets.

Speaking in his post, Laswad said, “Targeting airports, ports, and facilities in southern governorates will be met with targeting of Saudi airports, ports, and installations.”

He also reiterated prior threats made by STC’s leaders and activists to strike Saudi military sites in southern and eastern Yemen.

Addressing Saudi authorities directly, Laswad added, “We are close to you, and you will know who the people of the South are. Do not trust your advisers from the South, and you should take a careful look at the people of the South and their political cause.”

Observers note that these statements mark a significant escalation in the political and media rhetoric between the STC and Saudi Arabia, moving from internal political disputes to direct threats against economic and sovereign targets.

The threats coincide with a statement from the STC’s leadership calling on supporters to gather in Aden’s Al-Aroud Square on Friday, in protest against the closure of their offices and Saudi influence in the south.

The closure of the STC’s offices in Aden by Saudi-backed factions last Sunday forms part of a continuing series of confrontations between Saudi and UAE-backed groups in southern and eastern Yemen.

@E.Y.M