Saudi Arabia has reportedly fired on the eastern Hadramout province in Yemen. The strikes were allegedly against the Southern Transitional Council.

Saudi Arabia on Thursday formally called on Emirati-backed separatists in Yemen to withdraw from two governorates their forces now control in the country, a move that threatens sparking a confrontation within a fragile coalition battling the Houthi rebels.

Saudi Arabia on Saturday said it would back Sanaa's government in any military confrontation with separatist forces in a statement that came a day after reported Saudi air strikes in Yemen's Hadramawt province.

Saudi Arabia warned it will back Yemen's government militarily if separatists do not withdraw from seized provinces, following reported Saudi airstrikes and U.S. calls for restraint.

The separatist group, the Southern Transitional Council, used military force this month to take over parts of the oil-rich Hadramaut province in the south of Yemen and al-Mahra province in the east. The group was founded in 2017 with financial and military support from the United Arab Emirates, a Saudi ally.

Saudi Arabia says it will back Yemen’s government against separatists and urges the STC to withdraw peacefully from areas seized in Hadramawt.

Saudi Arabia, the chief backer of Yemen’s internationally recognized government, said Thursday that separatist forces must return recently

Yemen’s Houthi rebels and the Saudi-backed Yemeni government have reached a new agreement to carry out a large-scale prisoner exchange, marking a significant humanitarian step amid ongoing efforts to de-escalate the conflict.