Informed political sources have revealed sharp differences between the leadership of the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) to appoint a new head for the council, to replace Aidarous al-Zubaidi, YPA said on Monday.
The sources said that the UAE called on the leaders of the “STC” to resolve its position by appointing a new head of the Council, which Saudi Arabia has been holding in Riyadh since the beginning of last October.
The STC’s leaders held meetings that all witnessed tensions between the leaders affiliated with “Dhalea, Radfan, Yafa, Hadramout.”
The sources explained that the meetings led to the unanimous approval of the members of the Council to remove al-Zubaidi amid differences in naming an alternative, noting that the most agreed candidate is Nasser al-Khabji, who belongs to the Radfan region of Lahj, amid opposition to the imposition of “Ahmed Said bin Brik” who is currently in the Egyptian capital Cairo.
The sources pointed out that some nominated Ahmed Lamlas, a former leader of the General Congress Party, affiliated with the STC to be a replacement for al-Zubaidi, whose role appears to end in a tragic way no different from his Salafi deputy Hani bin Brik, who has been under house arrest by the UAE in Abu Dhabi since February, amid accusations that he carried out dozens of assassinations in central Aden for the benefit of Emirati intelligence.
Differences plague the members of the “STC” due to the exchange of interest deals between the UAE and Saudi Arabia by handing over Aden to the Saudi forces in exchange for empowering the UAE-affiliated forces from Marib, with the aim of eliminating the “STC” and Islah militants in one fell swoop.
Military and political relations between Saudi Arabia and Tariq Afash have expanded since the beginning of this year. The Saudis want Tariq’s forces to substitute the “STC” militia in Aden and Marib, which resulted in the appointment new governors of Shabwa and Hadramout from the General People’s Congress (GPC).
