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Yemen: UAE-backed forces take control of Socotra Security Directorate

June 19, 2020 at 4:42 pm

A Yemeni soldier loyal to the Saudi and UAE-backed government on 8 Aughust 2018 [KARIM SAHIB/AFP/Getty Images]

Forces of the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) today captured the building of the Socotra Security Directorate in Yemen, according to a local official.

The Yemeni official, speaking on condition of anonymity for security reasons, told Anadolu Agency that the STC forces took over the building located in the western region of Hadiboh, the capital of the province.

The official stressed that the clashes between the government forces and the STC militia are ongoing, as the latter is trying to advance towards taking over the city of Hadiboh.

Another government official told Anadolu Agency that “the STC militia launched an artillery bombing on neighbourhoods and houses, in an attempt to advance towards the city of Hadiboh and take control of the centre of the province.”

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The Yemeni official did not mention the extent of losses or the number of victims of the artillery bombing on Socotra.

Meanwhile, there has been no immediate announcement from the Yemeni government or the STC regarding the military clashes.

Yesterday, a government official told Anadolu Agency that the UAE-backed forces took control of the western entrance to Hadiboh.

Socotra is the largest island in the Socotra Archipelago, which consists of six islands and enjoys a strategic location in the Indian Ocean, off the coast of the Horn of Africa, near the Gulf of Aden.