Saudi Arabia bombed Yemen’s port city of Mukalla on Tuesday after a weapons shipment from the United Arab Emirates arrived for separatist forces in the war-torn country.

Saudi Arabia also warned that it viewed Emirati actions as “extremely dangerous.”

The bombing followed days of tensions over the advance of the separatist forces known as the Southern Transitional Council, which are backed by the Emirates.

Despite the warning, the council and its allies issued a statement supporting the UAE’s presence, even as others allied with Saudi Arabia demanded Emirati forces withdraw from Yemen in 24 hours’ time.

The UAE separately called for “restraint and wisdom” while disputing Riyadh’s allegations against it. It did not say it would withdraw from Yemen as demanded.

The confrontation threatened to open a new front in Yemen’s decade-long war, with forces allied against the Houthis possibly turning their sights on each other in the Arab world’s poorest nation long stalked by famine and disease.

It also further strained ties between Saudi Arabia and the UAE, neighboring nations on the Arabian Peninsula that increasingly have competed over economic issues and the region’s politics, particularly in the wider Red Sea region. 

(AP/NAN)