Control of Yemen’s interim capital Aden has shifted decisively to Saudi-backed forces, marking a dramatic reversal for the Southern Transitional Council (STC) just days after it renewed calls for southern independence. The turning point came after Abdulrahman Abu Zara’a Al-Mahrami, a powerful militia leader and vice president of the STC, defected to the Saudi-supported Presidential Leadership Council (PLC), effectively dismantling the separatist body’s military and political core.
Al-Mahrami, better known as Abu Zara’a, commands the Southern Giants Brigades, one of the most battle-hardened armed formations in Yemen. His forces moved swiftly to take control of the presidential palace in Aden, a symbolic and strategic centre of authority. With that action, the STC’s grip on the city collapsed, leaving Saudi-backed factions firmly in charge of the capital that has served as the seat of the internationally recognised government since the Houthi takeover of Sanaa in 2014.
The STC was formed in 2017 with backing from the United Arab Emirates and has long sought to re-establish an independent state in southern Yemen, reviving divisions that predate the country’s unification in 1990. It has controlled large parts of Aden and surrounding governorates for years, often clashing with forces loyal to the Saudi-led coalition despite both sides nominally opposing the Iran-aligned Houthi movement.
Just a week before its collapse, the STC had again signalled its intention to pursue independence, a move that heightened tensions within the anti-Houthi camp. However, internal fractures, combined with shifting regional priorities, appear to have fatally weakened the group. Al-Mahrami’s decision to align himself and his forces with the PLC deprived the STC of its most effective military arm and exposed its reliance on external backing rather than cohesive internal authority.
The Presidential Leadership Council was established in 2022 under Saudi auspices as a unified executive body intended to bring together Yemen’s fragmented anti-Houthi factions. While riven by internal rivalries, it has gradually consolidated influence in areas under coalition control. The defection of the Giants Brigades significantly strengthens the PLC’s position in the south and underscores Riyadh’s growing determination to rein in separatist ambitions that could further splinter the country.
The UAE-backed STC now exists largely in name only. While small pockets of loyalists remain in some southern governorates, including the strategically important island of Socotra, the organisation no longer functions as a coherent governing or military force. Its institutions in Aden have effectively dissolved, and its leaders have either gone silent or fled the city.
This latest shift highlights the fluid and transactional nature of Yemen’s conflict, where alliances frequently change and armed groups recalibrate their loyalties in response to external pressure and evolving power dynamics. It also reflects broader regional realignments, as Saudi Arabia seeks to stabilise areas under its influence while pursuing de-escalation with the Houthis through indirect negotiations.
