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Yemen’s southern separatist movement said on Friday it aimed to hold a referendum on independence from the north in two years, as Saudi-backed forces fought to recapture areas the separatists seized last month in a move that triggered a major feud between Gulf powers.
The statement by the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council was the clearest indication yet of its intention to secede, but may be seen by Yemen’s internationally recognised government and its Saudi backers as an escalation of the crisis.
It came hours after the government said it had launched an operation to recapture the crucial Hadramout province, one of the main areas seized by the STC last month, with Saudi military support.
The surprise advance by the separatists in early December shifted power in Yemen, which has been at war for more than a decade, fracturing the coalition against the Houthis and laying bare divisions between Gulf allies Saudi Arabia and the UAE.
