CAIRO -- A declaration of self-rule by the most influential Yemeni southern separatist group has triggered concerns that Yemen's conflict could escalate just as the United Nations is seeking a nationwide cease-fire to prevent the spread of the coronavirus.
The United Arab Emirates, the separatists' main backer, said Monday that it opposes the declaration and urged the group to honor a peace deal it signed last year with the internationally recognized government affirming shared control of the south. Saudi Arabia -- which, along with the UAE, leads a regional Sunni Muslim coalition fighting in Yemen -- called for the separatists to reverse their move, describing it as "an escalatory action."
The United Nations also voiced concern, urging the feuding sides to adhere to the peace deal, known as the Riyadh Agreement. Accusations of delays in implementing the truce appear to have prompted the Southern Transitional Council's decision over the weekend to declare self-rule.
The tensions were the latest jolt to Yemen's south, after at least 14 people, including five children, were killed in flash floods last week in the Red Sea city of Aden, the temporary capital of the internationally recognized Yemeni government. The country, the Arab world's poorest, is already in the grip of the world's most severe humanitarian crisis after more than five years of conflict. This month, the first case of covid-19, the disease caused by the novel coronavirus, was detected, sparking fears that the disease could quickly spread at a time when Yemen is facing deep cuts in humanitarian aid funding.
"The latest turn of events is disappointing, especially as the city of Aden and other areas in the south have yet to recover from flooding and are facing the risk of covid-19," said Martin Griffiths, the U.N. special envoy for Yemen, in a statement. "Now, more than ever, all political actors must cooperate in good faith, refrain from taking escalatory actions, and put the interests of Yemenis first."
The fresh animosities are a reminder of the multiple wars suffocating Yemen. While the primary, and best-known, conflict pits the Saudi-led coalition against northern rebels known as Houthis, the battle for the strategic port city of Aden and other areas in the south involves two allies within the coalition.
The UAE supports the separatist Southern Transitional Council, while Saudi Arabia backs the internationally recognized Yemeni government of President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi. All are against the Iran-aligned Houthis, but rifts inside the coalition have been simmering for more than two years.
The Southern Transitional Council, which favors splitting Yemen's south from its north, have long tangled with the Yemeni government, ruled for decades by northerners. The group and the UAE disapprove of Hadi's alliance with Islah, an influential Islamist party. The Saudis view Islah as part of Yemen's political fabric. But the UAE and the Southern Transitional Council oppose any role for Islah because of its links to the Muslim Brotherhood, a regional political Islamist movement that the UAE and other Arab countries have labeled terrorists.
In November, the Southern Transitional Council and the government signed a peace agreement in the Saudi capital, Riyadh.
The deal called in particular for a government composed of equal numbers of southerners and northerners, for the separatist forces to come under the control of the government and for the Southern Transitional Council to return all government buildings it had seized.
But over the weekend, it became clear the mistrust had deepened once again.
The Southern Transitional Council vice president, Hani Ali Brik, sent a tweet Sunday morning accusing the Hadi government of blocking the deal and of corruption and mismanagement. Hours earlier, the separatists had announced emergency rule in Aden and other southern provinces. They also declared their intent to take control of the port, the airport, the central bank and other government areas.
Officials in three southern provinces -- Shabwa, Hadhramaut and Socotra -- rejected the self-rule declaration. Yemen's foreign minister said the announcement was "a resumption of its armed insurgency" and warned of "dangerous and catastrophic consequences."
A Section on 04/28/2020