On December 30, 2025, a dramatic escalation unfolded in Yemen’s long-running civil war as Saudi Arabia bombed the port city of Mukalla, targeting what it described as an imminent threat: a shipment of weapons and military vehicles allegedly sent from the United Arab Emirates (UAE) to support separatist forces. The airstrike, which Saudi officials said was conducted with precision and no reported casualties, marks a rare and public rift between two of the region’s closest allies and throws the anti-Houthi coalition into deep uncertainty.
According to the Associated Press, the Saudi military announced the strikes after ships from Fujairah, UAE, arrived in Mukalla and offloaded large quantities of arms and combat vehicles. The Saudi Press Agency relayed a statement from the military: “The ships’ crew had disabled tracking devices aboard the vessels, and unloaded a large amount of weapons and combat vehicles in support of the Southern Transitional Council’s forces.” The statement continued, “Considering that the aforementioned weapons constitute an imminent threat, and an escalation that threatens peace and stability, the Coalition Air Force has conducted this morning a limited airstrike that targeted weapons and military vehicles offloaded from the two vessels in Mukalla.”
The incident is the latest and most serious in a series of recent tensions between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, who, despite being neighbors and partners in the Saudi-led coalition against Yemen’s Houthi rebels, have increasingly found themselves at odds over the future of Yemen and influence in the wider Red Sea region. The target of the shipment, the Southern Transitional Council (STC), is a separatist force that has seized swathes of southern Yemen and openly calls for the reestablishment of South Yemen as an independent state. The STC is backed by the UAE, while Saudi Arabia has supported Yemen’s internationally recognized government and other anti-Houthi factions.
In a strongly worded statement, the Saudi Foreign Ministry directly accused the UAE of dangerous meddling. “The steps taken by the UAE are considered highly dangerous,” the ministry said, warning that such actions threatened Saudi Arabia’s national security and the stability of Yemen and the region. “The kingdom stresses that any threat to its national security is a red line, and the Kingdom will not hesitate to take all necessary steps and measures to confront and neutralize any such threat.”
The UAE, for its part, rejected the accusations and expressed surprise at the Saudi airstrikes. The Emirati Foreign Ministry stated, “The UAE categorically rejects any attempt to implicate it in the tensions between Yemeni parties and condemns the allegations of pressuring or directing any Yemeni party to carry out military operations that threaten the security of the sisterly Kingdom of Saudi Arabia or target its borders.” The UAE insisted that the vehicles offloaded in Mukalla were intended for its own forces operating in Yemen and claimed the shipment was coordinated with Saudi Arabia. “The UAE was surprised by the targeting of these vehicles at the port of Mukalla,” the ministry said, and called for “the highest levels of coordination, restraint and wisdom, taking into account the existing security challenges and threats.”
The Emirati Defense Ministry later announced it would withdraw its remaining troops from Yemen, citing “recent developments and their potential repercussions on the safety and effectiveness of counter-terrorism operations.” However, no timeline was provided for the withdrawal. The UAE had broadly pulled out most of its forces in 2019 but maintained a presence in support of the STC and counterterrorism missions.
The Southern Transitional Council, meanwhile, doubled down. The STC’s AIC satellite news channel aired footage of the aftermath of the strike but avoided showing damage to the armored vehicles. “This unjustified escalation against ports and civilian infrastructure will only strengthen popular demands for decisive action and the declaration of a South Arabian state,” the channel declared. Mohamed Alsahimi, the STC’s UK representative, told Middle East Eye, “It’s a clear violation of human rights and places civilians in danger. It disrupts civil peace and the freedom of navigation as well. There is no legal justification for these strikes.”
Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council (PLC), the executive government body initially backed by both Saudi Arabia and the UAE, responded with forceful measures. On December 30, PLC head Rashad al-Alimi announced the cancellation of a joint defense agreement with the UAE and demanded all Emirati forces leave Yemen within 24 hours. The PLC further declared a state of emergency, ending cooperation with the UAE, and imposed a 72-hour ban on border crossings and entries to airports and seaports, except those allowed by Saudi Arabia. However, the STC’s Alsahimi dismissed the PLC’s authority, stating that its chair made a “unilateral decision... without any consensus from the other PLC members.”
The roots of this latest crisis stretch back weeks. Earlier in December, the UAE-backed STC launched an offensive, seizing control of key provinces in Yemen’s southeast, including the oil-rich Hadramout governorate and the port city of Mukalla. The STC now claims eight governorates and has revived the flag and rhetoric of historic South Yemen, which existed as an independent country from 1967 until unification in 1990. Demonstrators have rallied in support of the separatists, hoisting the old flag above government buildings and calling for renewed independence.
Saudi-backed forces, including the National Shield Forces, were pushed out of these areas by the STC’s advance. The Saudi government, according to CNN, accused the UAE of “pressuring” the STC to conduct operations near the Saudi border and warned that such moves fragmented the anti-Houthi front at a critical time. The Saudi airstrike on Mukalla was reportedly the second in a matter of days targeting the STC, with a previous strike in Hadramout described by analysts as a warning to halt the separatists’ advance.
International reaction has been one of growing alarm. Jens Laerke, spokesperson for the U.N. humanitarian office, urged all parties to protect civilians and critical infrastructure, warning that any disruption to port operations “risks affecting the already dire humanitarian situation and humanitarian supply chains.” The United States, through Secretary of State Marco Rubio, called for restraint and diplomacy, stating, “We urge restraint and continued diplomacy, with a view to reaching a lasting solution. We are grateful for the diplomatic leadership of our partners, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, and remain supportive of all efforts to advance our shared security interests.”
For Yemen, the implications are grave. More than a decade of war has killed over 150,000 people, shattered the economy, and left millions on the brink of famine. The anti-Houthi coalition, already fractured by local rivalries and shifting allegiances, now faces the prospect of its two principal backers turning their sights on each other. As the Houthis continue to attack shipping in the Red Sea and the humanitarian crisis deepens, the latest confrontation between Saudi Arabia and the UAE threatens to open a new and dangerous front in an already devastating conflict.
The events of December 30, 2025, have thrown the future of Yemen—and the unity of its anti-Houthi coalition—into fresh doubt, with regional power struggles now playing out on the ground in the world’s poorest Arab nation.
