Yemen southern separatist leader skips crisis talks amid Saudi-UAE tensions

RIYADH, Jan 7: The leader of Yemen's southern separatists failed to board a flight to Riyadh for crisis talks on Wednesday and his fate was unclear, adding uncertainty to efforts to contain a military escalation that has caused a major rift between Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

A fast-moving crisis in Yemen has ignited a feud between the two most powerful countries in the oil-rich Gulf and fractured a coalition headed by Yemen's internationally recognised government that is fighting the Iran-backed Houthis.

After Aidarous al-Zubaidi's unexplained absence from the Riyadh talks, his Southern Transitional Council said he was overseeing military and security operations in the southern port city of Aden. Reuters could not verify his whereabouts.

A senior official in Zubaidi's Southern Transitional Council said he and other members of a delegation had arrived in the Saudi capital and talks would start. Hours earlier, the group had said it had lost contact with its delegation.

"I have arrived in Riyadh accompanied by colleagues from Aden, and in a positive atmosphere, we will begin a series of meetings to prepare for a South-South dialogue under the sponsorship of our brothers in the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia," Mohammad Al Ghaithi said in a post on X.    �"REUTERS