The Saudi-led coalition carried out a targeted strike at Yemen’s Mukalla port, accusing foreign-backed vessels of delivering weapons to southern separatists.Published On 30 Dec 202530 Dec 2025|Updated: 10 minutes agoUpdated: 10 minutes agoClick here to share on social mediashare2ShareSaudi Arabia has said its national security is a “red line” it would defend, hours after a coalition it leads struck vehicles and cargo in Yemen that it said has been supplied by a foreign military to separatists in that country’s south.The coalition’s “limited military operation” at Mukalla port in Yemen came days after it warned the separatist Southern Transitional Council (STC) group against taking military action in Hadramout province.Recommended Stories list of 4 itemsend of listYemen’s Saudi-backed presidential council has named the United Arab Emirates as the country that supplied the assistance to the STC that was targeted in the coalition’s strike.The Saudi Foreign Ministry said in a statement Tuesday it hopes the UAE would take the necessary steps to preserve bilateral relations between Gulf Arab nations.Coalition spokesperson Turki al-Malki said two ships entered Mukalla port on Saturday and Sunday without coalition authorisation, disabled their tracking systems, and unloaded large quantities of weapons and combat vehicles “to support” the STC.The Saudi-backed head of Yemen’s presidential council, Rashad al Alimi, said on Tuesday after the air strike that all forces of the United Arab Emirates must leave Yemen within 24 hours. People attend a rally organised by the Southern Transitional Council in Aden, Yemen [File: Fawaz Salman/Reuters]“Given the danger and escalation posed by these weapons … the coalition air forces carried out a limited military operation this morning targeting weapons and combat vehicles that had been unloaded from the two ships at the port of al-Mukalla,” the official Saudi Press Agency (SPA) reported. Advertisement Al Alimi also said that the presidential council was cancelling a defence agreement with the UAE, and would close all ports and border crossings for 72 hours.Two sources told Reuters news agency that the strike specifically targeted the dock where the cargo had been unloaded. The coalition said there were no casualties or collateral damage and emphasised that the operation was conducted in accordance with international humanitarian law.The strike comes amid heightened tensions following an offensive earlier this month by the STC against Yemeni government troops backed by the coalition.Saudi Defence Minister Khalid bin Salman Al Saud posted on X that the STC troops should “peacefully hand over” two regional governorates to the government. Meanwhile, United States Secretary of State Marco Rubio called for “restraint and continued diplomacy, with a view to reaching a lasting solution”.A divided YemenThe STC was initially part of the Saudi-led coalition that intervened in Yemen in 201 …
