Southern Yemeni separatist leader Aidarous al-Zubaidi called for a "popular mobilization" against the Houthis and in defense of southern autonomy, marking his first televised address since his Southern Transitional Council (STC) lost territory to the government in January.
Al-Zubaidi's address coincides with efforts by Saudi-backed government forces, supported by former STC affiliates and other southern factions, to counter advances by Iran-backed Houthi rebels along Yemen's Red Sea coast.
In his plea to the people of southern Yemen, al-Zubaidi urged them to "mobilize" in defense of the south and its "political entity."
"We declare the general popular mobilization to defend the south and its national liberation project, and to continue the national defense battle against the Houthi militias and their Iranian expansionist project, and all extremist groups, targeting our people, its political entity and its armed forces throughout the Arab territories of the Arab Republic on the borders before May 22, 1990," he stated, referencing the period when South Yemen was an independent nation from 1967 to 1990.
