Ahmed Kamel – Egypt Daily News
The sudden dissolution of Yemen’s Southern Transitional Council (STC) has reignited deep divisions over the future of southern Yemen, raising fresh questions about whether long-standing aspirations for independence have been derailed or merely reshaped under a new political framework backed by Saudi Arabia.
On Friday, the STC announced it was dissolving itself along with all its main and subsidiary bodies, shutting down its offices both inside Yemen and abroad. The decision, reported by Yemen’s official news agency Saba, marked a dramatic turn for a body that has been the primary political vehicle for southern separatist ambitions since its establishment in 2017.
In a statement, the council called on political leaders, social figures, and influential actors across southern Yemen to engage in a comprehensive Southern Dialogue Conference sponsored by Saudi Arabia. The STC said it hoped the dialogue would lead to a unified vision for resolving the “southern question” and fulfilling the aspirations of the southern population through their freely expressed will, culminating in the creation of an inclusive southern political framework.
The announcement followed a review of recent events in the eastern provinces of Hadramout and Al-Mahra, where tensions escalated amid resistance to de-escalation efforts and mounting security concerns. The STC denied involvement in recent military operations in those areas, describing the developments as harmful to southern unity and damaging to relations with the Saudi-led Arab coalition, which it acknowledged had provided sustained political, economic, and military support.
The council framed its dissolution as a decision driven by what it called a “historic responsibility” toward the people of the south, aimed at preserving social peace, preventing further fragmentation, and safeguarding the right of southerners to pursue statehood through peaceful and consensual means.
Saudi officials were quick to endorse the move. Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman said the southern issue had entered a “real and credible path” under Saudi sponsorship, with international backing through the Riyadh Conference. He described the decision by southern leaders to dissolve the STC as a courageous step that demonstrated concern for the long-term future of the southern cause.
Prince Khalid added that a preparatory committee would be formed in consultation with southern figures to organize the dialogue conference, emphasizing Saudi Arabia’s role as a guarantor of a political process intended to unify southern ranks and stabilize Yemen’s south.
The announcement came a day after Saudi Ambassador to Yemen Mohammed Al Jaber met with an STC delegation in talks described by both sides as positive. The meeting reportedly focused on addressing the legacy of the previous phase, reinforcing southern unity, and supporting stability. The STC praised what it called Saudi Arabia’s clear and explicit commitments to sponsoring the dialogue process.
Despite the council’s formal dissolution, the move has triggered mixed reactions on the ground. STC-affiliated bodies and leaders called for mass demonstrations on Saturday in Aden and Mukalla under the banner “The Million-Man March of Loyalty and Steadfastness.” Organizers said the rallies aim to reaffirm the southern people’s right to self-determination and renew political support for southern leadership headed by Aidarous al-Zubaidi.
The calls extended to civil society organizations, trade unions, youth and women’s groups, and southern communities abroad, underscoring claims that popular legitimacy resides in the street rather than in dissolved institutions. Demonstrations are scheduled to begin at 3 p.m. local time in Aden’s Khormaksar district and Mukalla’s Decision Square.
Adding to the uncertainty, the Saudi-led coalition announced on Thursday that al-Zubaidi, widely regarded as the most prominent figure in the southern separatist movement, had left Yemen for the United Arab Emirates. His departure has fueled speculation about shifting regional alignments and the future leadership of the southern cause.
Saudi Arabia and the UAE first intervened militarily in Yemen in 2015 after the Iran-aligned Houthi movement seized the capital, Sanaa, the previous year. While the two Gulf allies initially operated within a unified coalition backing Yemen’s internationally recognized government, diverging priorities later emerged. The UAE supported the formation of the STC in 2017, which went on to seize large swathes of territory in southern Yemen, altering the balance of power and exposing fractures within the coalition.
Those developments placed Saudi Arabia and the UAE on opposing sides of the southern question, complicating efforts to present a unified front in Yemen’s multifaceted conflict. The dissolution of the STC may signal an attempt to reset that trajectory under Saudi mediation, but it also highlights the fragility of southern consensus.
As Yemen’s war enters another uncertain phase, the fate of southern separatist ambitions remains unresolved. Whether the Riyadh-sponsored dialogue represents a genuine pathway toward consensus or a temporary pause in a long struggle for independence will depend largely on whether southern factions can reconcile competing visions under a single political umbrella.
