Yemen declared a state of emergency Tuesday and demanded that the UAE forces leave the country within 24 hours, a call backed by Saudi Arabia.
Riyadh warned that its national security was a red line, the strongest language against Abu Dhabi yet, just hours after a Saudi-led coalition carried out an airstrike on the southern Yemeni port of Mukalla, against alleged foreign military support to UAE-backed southern separatists.
Meanwhile, Yemen's presidential council head, Rashad al-Alimi, cancelled a defense pact with the UAE, the Yemeni state news agency said and accused the UAE in a televised speech of fueling internal strife in Yemen with its support to the Southern Transitional Council (STC).
The bombing followed tensions over the advance of STC, which issued a statement supporting the UAE's presence.
Abu Dhabi, in its part, called for "restraint and wisdom" and disputed Riyadh's allegations against it. It did not say whether it would withdraw.
