Yemen Monitor | Newsroom:
The head of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), Aidarous al-Zubaidi, lashed out at the Presidential Leadership Council (PLC) during a meeting with Yemeni Parliament Speaker Sultan al-Barakani in Aden, accusing the council of failing to fulfill its role in liberating northern areas.
Al-Zubaidi accused the PLC of prolonging the conflict, claiming that the battles it is fighting are being waged “only through the media,” according to the STC’s official website.
The STC website said that al-Zubaidi received the Speaker of Parliament at Maasheeq Palace in the temporary capital, Aden, where they discussed the latest political developments on the domestic scene and ways to coordinate efforts to enhance security and stability in the liberated governorates. The discussions also covered confronting arms-smuggling networks to the Houthi militia, as the STC claims that taking control of Hadramowt and Al-Mahra is necessary to cut off smuggling routes.
Photos of the meeting showed it being held in the official hall designated for Presidential Leadership Council Chairman Rashad al-Alimi at Maasheeq Palace, with the absence of the national flag and the official portrait of the council chairman.
The meeting was attended by the Presidential Leadership Council’s advisor for defense and security affairs, Lt. Gen. Mahmoud al-Subaihi; the Minister of Defense, Lt. Gen. Mohsen al-Daari; the commander of the Fourth Military Region, Maj. Gen. Fadl Hassan; and a number of members of parliament.
The official Saba News Agency published a brief report on the meeting, stating that it discussed joint efforts to enhance security and stability in the liberated governorates, as well as coordinated efforts to liberate areas under Houthi control.
The meeting comes days after a statement by the House of Representatives described the STC’s steps as unilateral, called on it to withdraw its forces, and accused it of undermining the transitional phase.
It is noteworthy that the STC continues its military mobilization in Hadramowt and Al-Mahra, without responding to calls by the Chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council and the Arab Coalition to withdraw its forces and end the escalation and crisis it has caused since taking control of the eastern governorates.
