Sana'a, 30 December 2025 (dpa/MIA) - Yemen's Saudi-backed government coalition early on Tuesday conducted a 'limited airstrike' on two vessels in the Yemeni port city of Mukalla, the coalition's spokeperson said in a statement carried by the official Saudi Press Agency SPA.

General Turki al-Malki said that the vessels had arrived at the Port of Mukalla, capital of the sprawling south-eastern Hadhramaut province, from the Port of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates (UAE) without the appropriate permits over the weekend.

Al-Malki said that "a large amount of weapons and combat vehicles in support of the Southern Transitional Council's (STC) forces in Hadramaut and Al Mahrah governorates in Eastern Yemen" unloaded from the vessels was the target of the coalition's "limited airstrike," which was carried out "in a manner that guarantees no collateral damage."

Tensions were reignited in war-torn Yemen after southern separatists backed by the UAE seized large chunks of territory previously controlled by theSaudi-backed government in the provinces of Hadramaut and al-Mahra, which together make up around half of Yemen's territory.

On Saturday, theSaudi-led coalition requested the withdrawal of the STC forces, threatening retaliation against military movements undermining de-escalation efforts in Yemen.

The STC and the government have been allied for years in the fight against the Iran-backed Houthi rebels. However, the STC has repeatedly defeated its partners as it seeks to control larger areas of Yemen and demands secession of the country's southern region.

The impoverished country has been embroiled in a power struggle since 2014 between government forces, supported bySaudi Arabia, and the Houthis, who control large swathes of territory in the north, including the capital Sana'a.

BothSaudi Arabiaand the UAE support the fight against the Houthis in Yemen, but they are seen as regional rivals.

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