As tension between the two Gulf oil powers reaches boiling point, the coalition struck what it described as foreign military support to UAE-backed southern separatists, while the head of Yemen’s Saudi-backed presidential council set the deadline.

Yemen’s Presidential Council Head, Rashad al-Alimi, also cancelled a defence pact with the UAE, the state news agency said, and accused the UAE in a televised speech of fuelling internal strife in Yemen.

“Unfortunately, it has been definitively confirmed that the UAE pressured and directed the STC to undermine and rebel against the authority of the state through military escalation,” he added. Saudi Arabia urged the Emiratis to comply with the demand. The UAE’s Foreign Ministry did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

–Reuters–