BEIJING, Jan 29, 2018 (BSS/Xinhua) – Intense armed confrontations broke out on Sunday between the forces of the government and the Southern Transitional Council (STC) in the port city of Adena, after the government banned peaceful demonstrations organized by the STC in Aden province.
According to reports, 15 people were killed in clashes between forces loyal to the Saudi-backed Yemeni government and forces allied with the Southern Transitional Council, and dozens were wounded.
The fighting broke out after the expiry of a deadline set last week by separatists from the STC for President Abdu-Rabbu Mansour Hadi to sack the Aden-based government by accusing it of corruption and mismanagement. The government denies the charges.
A resident in Aden said that forces of the Presidential Guard unit deployed in Aden and opened fire against the anti-government protesters, injuring more than 15 people.
In response, the armed forces of the STC deployed on the streets and tried to protect the protesters, sparking fierce armed confrontations with government soldiers in Aden’s district of KhorMaksar.
Witnesses told Xinhua that a number of military bases of the Saudi-backed government were stormed and seized by the STC forces following hours of fighting.
Key government institutions and military facilities including the new headquarters of cabinet in Aden are recently controlled by the STC forces.
Also on Sunday, Yemen’s Prime Minister Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr called for immediate cease-fire and urged the Saudi-led coalition and the Gulf Cooperation Council (GCC) countries to intervene to end the fighting in Aden.
“Overthrowing the legitimate government will only benefit the Shiite Houthi rebels in Sana’a and Iran,” said the prime minister in his statement.
On the other hand, Saudi-led coalition called on Sunday upon political parties for calm and restraint in connection to the recent developments in Aden, Saudi Press Agency reported.
The coalition highlighted in a statement, the importance of Yemenis’ various orientations and affiliations to take into account national responsibility in guiding joint work with the coalition to complete the liberation of all Yemeni lands.
It continued that the coalition is following the developments in Aden and the media debate in this regard about some demands to rectify some imbalances in the government sector.
There have been rising tensions between southern separatists and the Hadi government over control of the southern half of the country. The two groups had been united throughout Yemen’s three-year civil war against the Iranian backed Houthis in the north, However, the conflicts could hinder the efforts of the coalition to control the Iranian expansion plans in Yemen.
The southern port city of Aden is considered as Yemen’s temporary capital and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government based itself there since 2015.
Yemen’s government, allied with the Saudi-led Arab military coalition, has for about three years been battling Iran-backed Shiite Houthi rebels over control of the country.
The coalition began a military air campaign in March 2015 to roll back Houthi gains and reinstate exiled Hadi and his government to the power.
The coalition also imposed air and sea blockade to prevent weapons from reaching Houthis, who had invaded the capital Sanaa militarily and seized most of the northern Yemeni provinces.
UN statistics show more than 10,000 people, most of them civilians, have been killed since the coalition intervened in the Yemeni civil war that also displaced around 3 million.
The Arab country is also suffering from the world’s largest cholera epidemic since April, with about 5,000 cases reported every day.