UAE forces begin phased withdrawal from Yemen’s Socotra

By Mohamed Mubarak

SANAA

The United Arab Emirates (UAE) on Tuesday began withdrawing military forces from the Yemeni island of Socotra, according to a Yemeni source based on the island.

“The withdrawal has already begun and will be carried out in phases,” the source told Anadolu Agency anonymously due to restrictions on speaking to media.

The source did not provide any further details.

Last week, the UAE dispatched a military force to Socotra without prior coordination with Yemen’s Aden-based government, which had described the deployment as “unjustified”.

Following days of Saudi mediation, however, the UAE consented on Monday to withdraw all its forces from the island.

The UAE is a member of a Saudi-led military coalition cobbled together in 2015 to fight the Houthi rebel group, which had overrun much of Yemen -- including capital Sanaa -- one year earlier.