DID Press: Southern Transitional Council (STC), backed by the UAE, has captured the strategic city of Sayun in Yemen’s Hadhramaut governorate, marking a significant shift in the country’s ongoing conflict.
The STC, a separatist group that is simultaneously part of Yemen’s internationally recognized government, seeks autonomy for southern Yemen. With recent advances, it has gained control over key oil-rich areas and strategic routes, raising the stakes in the southern theater of the war.
Formed in April 2017 with UAE backing, the STC has consolidated its influence in Aden and other southern provinces, aiming to establish itself as the dominant political and military actor in the region. The UAE’s support allows it to project power along Yemen’s southern coast, secure vital maritime routes including Bab al-Mandeb, and counter Islamist and militant groups.
While the STC currently avoids direct confrontation with Houthi forces in the north, its expansion in the south underscores a broader struggle over resources, territorial control, and political legitimacy in a country already facing one of the world’s most severe humanitarian crises.