Saudi forces stormed the Shahn port in the Yemeni governorate of Al-Mahra after an agreement to stop the escalation, while a Yemeni government official revealed today, Wednesday, that "Emirati pressure" was among the reasons for the suspension of the Abu Dhabi-backed Southern Transitional Council participation in negotiations to accelerate the implementation of the Riyadh Agreement.
A Yemeni government source told Al-Jazeera that Saudi forces stormed the Shahn port in Al-Mahra governorate with armored vehicles and air cover, adding that two Saudi helicopters flew low over the crossing.
He explained that the commander of the Saudi forces in Mahra told the local authority that he was carrying out high Saudi orders, and that the storming came after an agreement between the governor and the Mahra tribes to stop the escalation.
On the other hand, Mukhtar Al-Rahbi, an advisor to the Yemeni Minister of Information, said in a series of tweets on Twitter today that the withdrawal of the Southern Transitional Council from negotiations to implement the Riyadh Agreement "represents a grave insult to Saudi Arabia, the sponsor of the agreement, and makes it in an embarrassing position in front of everyone."
He stressed that the UAE pressured the transitional council not to hand over weapons or withdraw, because that would mean the end of the Abu Dhabi project in Yemen and the page of the "transitional" hegemony over Aden, as he described it.
Al-Rahbi considered that the transitional council’s decision is “an escape from the implementation of the military and security aspect, and for reasons, including internal problems (in the council) and a dispute over positions."
The Southern Transitional Council had informed Saudi Arabia at midnight last night of its decision to suspend its participation in the consultations for reasons, including the increasing pace of military escalation and the continued military build-up operations towards the south.