Thousands of people have attended demonstrations across southern Yemen in response to a call from exiled separatist leader Aidarous al-Zubaidi for a "popular mobilisation" to halt the ongoing Houthi advance.
In his first address since fleeing the country in January, the head of the Southern Transitional Council on Tuesday called on southern Yemenis to join the Saudi-backed government's efforts to turn the tide of the war.
Videos published by pro-separatist media showed mass protests in several cities - including Aden, Mukalla, Seiyun and Al-Ghaydah - which coincided with the anniversary of the 14 October revolution, the South Yemeni rebellion against British rule in 1963.
Some demonstrators were seen waving Emirati flags and carrying portraits of UAE President Mohammed bin Zayed in an expression of support for the STC's main foreign backer.
"We declare the general mobilisation to defend the south and its national liberation project, and to continue the national defence battle against the Houthi militias and their Iranian expansionist project," Zubaidi said in his televised statement.
He stopped short of issuing a specific call but urged southern Yemenis to "prepare to meet the call to defend our homeland … against the invading Houthi militia".
Yemen's internationally recognised Saudi-backed government has suffered major setbacks since its war with the Houthis resumed last month.
Since September, the Iran-backed Houthis seized control of the Red Sea coast and encircled Taiz, Yemen's third-largest city and a major government stronghold. It has also mounted dozens of attacks on Saudi Arabia, including a strike on Riyadh airport over the weekend that killed 13 people and wounded hundreds.
Political analyst Mohammed al-Qadhi said the timing of Zubaidi's address was significant, coinciding with the 14 October revolution and the Houthis' gains on the battlefield, which are "significantly altering the balance of power" in the country,
"The STC wants to demonstrate that it remains an important and influential force in the south and should play a key role both militarily and in any future political settlement," he told The New Arab.
UAE backing
Zubaidi condemned the Houthi attacks on the kingdom but called on Riyadh to support the STC's ambitions for south Yemen's independence.
Saudi Arabia has fiercely opposed separatism in southern Yemen and in January launched a decisive military intervention against the STC and other UAE-backed militias/
The operation resulted in the dissolution of the STC inside Yemen and Saudi-backed groups asserting control over the south. Zubaidi was charged with treason by the Yemeni government and he fled the country as a result. He is thought to have been living in Abu Dhabi for the past nine months.
"Zubaidi’s intervention is primarily about political leverage," Andreas Krieg, senior security studies lecturer at King's College London, told The New Arab.
"He is telling Riyadh that southern forces are prepared to fight the Houthis, but not simply to restore a Saudi-backed Yemeni state that has spent the past year dismantling their political project. He is effectively presenting southern independence as the price of military cooperation."
The Saudi intervention has also curtailed Abu Dhabi's influence in Yemen, with the Emirati military withdrawing from the country and its surrogates being brought into closer alignment with Riyadh.
"Abu Dhabi wants to recover influence without again assuming responsibility for Yemen's war," said Krieg.
"What we are witnessing is an attempt to turn Saudi Arabia's deteriorating military position into Emirati political leverage."
