Saudi Arabia bombs Yemen port after calling strike by ‘brotherly’ UAE ‘dangerous’

Amid rising tensions in Yemen, Saudi Arabia carried out airstrikes on the port city of Mukalla on Tuesday, targeting a shipment of weapons reportedly destined for the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC), a separatist group in southern Yemen. The United Arab Emirates did not immediately comment on the strike.

The attack marks a new escalation between Riyadh and the STC, while also straining relations between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, which support rival factions in Yemen’s decade-long war against Iranian-backed Houthi rebels. The move comes amid heightened tensions across the wider Red Sea region.

Targeted vessels and weapons shipment

The strike is believed to have hit a vessel identified by analysts as the Greenland, a roll-on, roll-off ship registered in St Kitts. Vessel tracking data indicated it was docked in Fujairah, UAE, on 22 December and reached Mukalla on Sunday. A second ship mentioned in reports could not be immediately identified.

Saudi authorities said the ships had disabled their tracking devices and unloaded significant quantities of weapons and military vehicles to support STC forces. According to the Saudi Press Agency, the weapons posed an “imminent threat” and threatened peace and stability, prompting a “limited airstrike” aimed at the offloaded arms and vehicles.

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There was no immediate information on casualties, and it was unclear if any forces other than Saudi Arabia were involved. Saudi officials added that the strike was conducted overnight to avoid collateral damage.

Evidence of weapons movement

Mohammed al-Basha, a Yemen analyst and founder of the Basha Report, cited social media videos showing armoured vehicles moving through Mukalla after the ships’ arrival. Saudi state television later broadcast footage, purportedly filmed by a surveillance aircraft, showing vehicles being transported to a staging area—corroborating the social media reports.

“I expect a calibrated escalation from both sides,” al-Basha said. “The UAE-backed STC is likely to consolidate control, but the flow of weapons from the UAE to the STC will be curtailed, particularly since Saudi Arabia controls the airspace.”

Strategic importance of Mukalla

Mukalla, in Yemen’s Hadramout governorate, is around 480 km north-east of Aden, the administrative centre of anti-Houthi forces since the rebels captured the capital, Sana’a, in 2014. The STC has recently seized parts of Hadramout, forcing out units linked to the Saudi-backed National Shield Forces, another coalition group fighting the Houthis.

Supporters of the STC have increasingly displayed the flag of South Yemen, which existed as a separate state from 1967 to 1990. Demonstrations have continued in recent days, with activists calling for renewed secession from Yemen.

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Strain on Saudi-UAE relations

The separatists’ actions in Mukalla and elsewhere have added friction to the Saudi-UAE relationship. While both countries maintain close ties and are fellow Opec members, they have increasingly competed for influence and economic interests in Yemen and the wider region in recent years.