According to the UAE Ministry of Defense, Abu Dhabi had already ended its formal military presence in Yemen in 2019 after completing assigned missions within the Saudi-led coalition, leaving only limited units operating in coordination with partners.
The ministry said recent developments and growing risks to the safety and effectiveness of these missions prompted the full withdrawal.
The announcement came after Yemen’s Saudi-baked government revoked the joint defense agreement with the UAE and issued a 24-hour ultimatum for Emirati forces to leave the country.
Al-Alimi accused the UAE of backing armed rebellion by the Southern Transitional Council in eastern provinces, particularly Hadramout and al-Mahra, and of undermining Yemeni state institutions, while praising Saudi Arabia’s role in attempting to de-escalate the crisis.
Meanwhile, Saudi Arabia publicly expressed hope that the UAE would comply with Yemen’s demand and halt all military and financial support to separatist factions, warning that continued escalation undermines the stated goals of the coalition and regional stability.
In a related development, Saudi-led coalition spokesperson Turki al-Maliki said two ships arriving from the Emirati port of Fujairah entered Mukalla port without authorization, disabled tracking systems, and unloaded large quantities of weapons and armored vehicles for the Southern Transitional Council, in what he described as a violation of UN Security Council Resolution 2216.
The coalition said it carried out a limited airstrike targeting the unloaded weapons after a request from Yemen’s pro-Saudi government.