The Saudi-led coalition will carry out a military operation in Yemen and has called on civilians to immediately evacuate the port city of Mukalla, Saudi Arabia’s state news agency SPA reported on Tuesday.
“The evacuation is intended to protect civilians during the execution of the military operation,” SPA said.
The coalition had warned southern Yemeni separatist forces that it would support Yemen’s internationally recognised government in any military confrontation.
Shortly afterwards, the coalition announced that it had struck shipments of weapons and combat vehicles that had been unloaded in Yemen from ships arriving from the United Arab Emirates (UAE).
“Two ships arriving from the port of Fujairah entered the port of Mukalla on Saturday and Sunday without obtaining official authorisation from the Coalition Joint Forces Command,” SPA reported.
“In view of the threat posed by these weapons and the escalation that endangers security and stability, the coalition air force carried out a limited military operation this morning targeting the weapons and combat vehicles unloaded from the two ships in the port of Mukalla,” SPA added.
The attack signals a new escalation in tensions between Saudi Arabia and Yemen’s Southern Transitional Council, which is backed by the UAE. It also further strains relations between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, which support rival sides in Yemen’s long-running war against Iran-backed Houthi rebels.
Mukalla is located in Hadramaut province, which in recent days has been taken over by forces of the Southern Transitional Council. The port city lies about 480 kilometres southeast of Aden, which has been a hub for anti-Houthi forces since the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa in 2014.
Saudi Arabia carried out air strikes against the Southern Transitional Council on Friday, which analysts described as a warning to the separatists to halt their advance and withdraw from Hadramaut and Al Mahrah provinces.
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Saudi-led coalition announces military operation in Yemen
