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Crisis in Yemen

Yemen declares state of emergency for 90 days amid UAE-backed offensive

The chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council also announced a 72-hour air, sea, and land blockade on all ports, airports, and border crossings

DOHA, December 30. /TASS/. Rashad Muhammad al-Alimi, the chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, has declared a state of emergency nationwide for 90 days, according to a decree released by the republic’s official news agency SABA.

"A state of emergency for 90 days comes into force in the republic starting from Tuesday, December 30, 2025, with a possible extension," the decree reads. The measure comes amid "the need to counteract a coup, ongoing since 2014 <…>, and a riot provoked by rebel elements acting on orders from the United Arab Emirates to launch an offensive on eastern provinces in order to disintegrate" Yemen.

Al-Alimi also announced a 72-hour air, sea, and land blockade on all ports, airports, and border crossings.

The decree instructed military units in Hadhramaut and Al-Mahrah governorates aligned with the Southern Transitional Council (STC) to "fully coordinate with the command of the Saudi-led coalition, promptly return to their designated positions and camps without any clashes, and hand over all facilities to Homeland Shield Forces." The chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council also granted the governors of Hadhramaut and Al-Mahrah "full authority to govern the provinces."

On December 9, Aidarus al-Zoubaidi, chairman of the STC loyal to the United Arab Emirates, announced seizing control of the eastern Yemeni governorates of Hadhramaut and Al-Mahrah. He said the next stage would involve establishing the institutions of a future state in southern Yemen.

The Saudi Arabian Foreign Ministry described the separatists’ actions as an unjustified escalation and called on the STC to withdraw its forces from the two governorates. On the evening of December 27, a government source told the SABA news agency that the head of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council had requested military assistance from the Saudi-led coalition to protect the population of Hadhramaut from the separatists.

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Crisis in Yemen

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