ADEN, Yemen — A government official said Yemen’s airspace was briefly closed on Monday as tensions escalated in the country’s south after a separatist group backed by the United Arab Emirates took over an oil-rich region.
The recent takeover of areas in Hadhramaut province by the Southern Transitional Council reflects a rift in forces aligned against the Houthi rebels who have taken most of the country’s north, including the capital, Sanaa.
Since 2014, Yemen has been embroiled in a civil war pitting the Iranian-backed Houthis against an internationally recognized government, which is supported by a Saudi-led military coalition. The separatist Southern Transitional Council is part of the anti-Houthi camp, but it seeks an independent state in southern Yemen.
A Yemeni government official said Monday that the Saudi-led coalition had withheld permission for flights, including those to and from the southern city of Aden, the seat of the internationally recognized government.
The official described the move as a “Saudi message” to the separatists, following their latest takeover of areas in the sprawling oil-rich province of Hadhramaut, which borders Saudi Arabia. The escalation could lead to Yemen being split into two states after more than three decades of unification.
Saudi Arabia didn’t acknowledge closing Yemen’s airspace on Monday. Since the entry of a Saudi-led coalition into Yemen’s war in 2015, the coalition has controlled the country’s airspace.
Hundreds of passengers were stranded for hours before flight operations resumed, said the official, who spoke on condition of anonymity because he wasn’t authorized to brief the media.
An Associated Press journalist at the airport saw workers begin processing passengers of a Cairo-bound flight that was supposed to take off early Monday.
The Southern Transitional Council, or STC — an umbrella of armed groups trained and financed by the UAE — expanded its control over Yemen’s south earlier this month. They seized control of Seiyun in Hadhramaut, including crucial oil fields and energy installations, including PetroMasila, Yemen’s largest oil company, following brief clashes with the Yemeni military, and allied tribes.
Forces of the secessionist group were deployed across the strategic Wadi Hadramout area, which includes major urban centers and military bases, according to STC-allied media. They took over the presidential palace and the international airport in Seiyun last week, and advanced to the province of Mahra, which borders Oman, the group said.
STC hoisted the flag of South Yemen over government buildings across the country’s south inclu