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Saudi Arabian Forces Bomb Port in Yemen Raising Tensions with UAE

Yemen port
Saudi forces targeted the military vehicles offloaded from the cargo ships (Saudi Press Agency)

Published Dec 30, 2025 6:01 PM by The Maritime Executive

 

Saudi Arabia, acting in the name of what it calls the “Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen,” launched what it is terming limited airstrikes on the Port of Mukalla in southeastern Yemen on the Gulf of Aden. Saudi officials accused the United Arab Emirates of having sent a large amount of unauthorized military equipment into the port and demanded that the UAE immediately withdraw its unauthorized forces.

The UAE and Saudi Arabia have long been at odds, supporting different factions within Yemen, but today’s actions are being seen as a major escalation that could threaten further destabilization in the region. The UAE supports the so-called Southern Transitional Council, which in recent weeks has been consolidating its positions and expanding in the south of the country, including encroaching toward Saudi Arabia, which supports the government of Yemen.

The Saudi Press Agency released statements asserting that over the weekend, two vessels had arrived at the Port of Mukalla from the Port of Fujairah, “without obtaining permits.” They asserted that close surveillance and cargo documentation showed the vessels were offloading weapons and combat vehicles for the Southern Transitional Council.

 

 

One of the vessels is being identified as the Greenland, a RoRo flagged in St. Kitts and Nevis and managed by a company with offices in the UAE and Dubai. Built in 1984, the 12,870-dwt vessel was acquired by UAE interests in 2021. Associated Press reports the second vessel could not be immediately identified.

The Port of Mukalla is located some 300 miles from Aden. It is in another region of the country, far away from the Houthi stronghold at Sanaa in the northwest of the country. Both the factions supported by the Saudis and the UAE oppose the Houthis.

 

 

UAE officials denied Saudi Arabia’s accusations, saying it had been sending materials to its limited forces in Yemen. It asserts its sole focus is counterterrorism in Yemen and had withdrawn its military forces in 2019. The officials said the UAE would voluntarily withdraw its remaining forces from Yemen after today’s attacks.

Saudi Arabia had given the UAE a 24-hour ultimatum to withdraw from Yemen. AP reports the Southern Transition Council forces had pushed out forces affiliated with the Saudi-backed National Shield Forces in recent weeks.

Analysts feared the confrontation between the two powerful nations could signal a new front in Yemen’s decade-long civil war.