Aden: Fresh fighting erupted around Yemeni government facilities in Aden on Monday, witnesses said, as rival factions battled for a second day for control of the southern port city where the internationally-recognised administration is based.
Clashes between the Southern Transitional Council (STC) and forces loyal to President Abd Rabbo Mansour Hadi risk crippling their once united campaign against the Iran-aligned Al Houthi militia in Yemen’s north.
Witnesses reported fighting outside Yemeni government camps in northern Aden’s Khor Maksar and Dar Saad districts.
They said forces loyal to the STC were apparently trying to wrest control of the two bases from Prime Minister Ahmad Bin Dagher’s government.
In downtown Aden, most people stayed off the streets as government forces guarded the main road to Al Maasheeq palace where the government is based.
The two sides have traded accusations over who started the clashes on Sunday.
Yesterday, the Arab Coalition supporting legitimacy in Yemen stressed that it is important for all Yemenis to take responsibility for joint action with the Coalition in order to complete the liberation of all areas of Yemen from Al Houthis. In a statement, the Coalition leadership said, “The Arab Coalition supporting legitimacy in Yemen follows up on the latest developments in ... Aden, and the media debate in this context about some popular demands to rectify some imbalances ... It calls on all Yemeni political and social components to be calm and to [exercise] restraint.”
