Once again, the abductions of military leaders in the interim capital, Aden, is escalating, where accusing fingers point to militias affiliated with the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council.

Months ago, this phenomenon returned to top the scene in Aden, where it targeted political activists, military leaders and other persons in the popular resistance opposing the Southern Transitional Council, in the absence of any official presence of the Yemeni state.

On Wednesday evening, an armed group believed to be affiliated with the Southern Transitional Council abducted the leader of the Southern Popular Resistance, Muhammad Fadhl al-Saeedi, nicknamed "Abu Osama", in the Mansoura Directorate, in the center of Aden. A report issued by the Council of Free Resistance in the interim capital of Aden said that the head of the council, Sheikh Muhammad Fadhl al-Saeedi, was abducted by masked elements going on board two patrols (two military vehicles) in the Kabota area of the Mansoura Directorate in Aden.

He added: "In a dangerous precedent on Wednesday evening, the speaker of the Council was abducted, where his car in which he was traveling was stopped before he was taken to an unknown destination."

He expressed the Council's condemnation of this act, which has nothing to do with the state but rather is carried out by gangs, holding the security and municipal authorities in the capital, Aden, fully responsible for that.

The UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council has controlled Aden since its armed coup against the state in August 2019, and despite the signing of a political Agreement in 2019 and 2020 with the Yemeni government under Saudi sponsorship, it refuses to complete the implementation of the rest of the provisions related to the security and military files, which were mentioned in the agreement.

The abduction of a government officer:

Last Saturday, the leadership of the Public Transport Brigade, affiliated with the Yemeni government, announced the abduction of one of its officers near his home in Dar Saad Directorate – north of Aden.

In a communiqué posted on his Facebook account, the brigade commander, Brigadier General Amjad Khaled, said that armed militias affiliated with Saleh al-Sayed, the former police chief of Lahj Governorate (who is a commander affiliated with the Southern Transitional Council), abducted Captain Mazen al-Wusabi, from the vicinity of his home in the Dar Saad Directorate.

Brigadier General Khaled considered that what Saleh al-Sayed is doing is provocative and illegal behavior, pointing out that the storming of the homes of officers and members of the brigade in Aden by armed militias and without any official judicial directives is rejected altogether.

The Commander of the Governmental Transportation Brigade stressed the timely response to these illegal actions, hinting at the same time with urgent measures if such actions continued against the officers and members of the brigade.

He also called on the military personnel affiliated with the brigade in the city of Aden and the West Coast Front from Taiz Governorate – southwest, not to return and be present in the capital, Aden, as it is currently insecure, stressing that Saleh al-Sayed seeks to target the brigade's forces arbitrarily.

The military official called for the immediate release of Colonel Nazih al-Azibi, head of the brigade's operations, who was abducted on March 7 by Saleh al-Sayed in front of his house in Dar Saad Directorate, north of the capital, Aden.

Last April, the commander of the Transport Brigade affiliated with the Presidential Guard demanded, in a memorandum submitted to the Minister of Interior, Major General Ibrahim Haydan and Lieutenant General Muhammad al-Maqdishi, Minister of Defense, to arrest Saleh al-Sayed, the former Lahj police chief, who described him as a "terrorist", and to bring him quickly to justice and the competent judicial authority to complete the investigation with him.

He stressed the need to distribute a circular to airports and ports so that he cannot leave the country.

And the brigade commander, Amjad Khaled, accused the military leader of the Southern Transitional Council, Saleh al-Sayed, of committing several crimes, which he described as "terrorist".

Among them, he mentioned the assassination of Lieutenant Yusef Khaled Farhan, one of the brigade's officers, next to his house in the Dar Saad Directorate, the enforced disappearance of Colonel Nazih al-Azibi, head of the brigade's operations, the containment of leaders belonging to Al-Qaeda and the raiding of the homes of officers and members of the brigade.

On May 3, the political bureau of the Revolutionary Movement in Aden (an entity opposed to the Transitional Council) announced the abduction of the deputy head of the office, Madram Abu Siraj.

In its statement, the office said, "In a dangerous precedent set in night, Abu Siraj was abducted at dawn on the 3rd of May, blaming the security and local authorities in the capital, Aden, with full responsibility.

It considered the abduction of its deputy head of office as the act of hired gangs, calling for the disclosure of the fate of Abu Siraj, who is still unknown until now.

The interim capital, Aden, is witnessing a sharp popular division and a wide wave of anger after it has turned into an open arena for chaos and tampering, in which armed militias are proliferated and absent from it any manifestation of the state.

The leader of southern separatists, Aydarus al-Zubaidi, who is backed by the United Arab Emirates, called on Saturday, his militia to combat readiness.

During a meeting held by security and military leaders in Aden, al-Zubaidi, who heads the Southern Transitional Council that was formed in mid-2017, stressed that caution is taken, and the degree of combat readiness is raised in anticipation of any upcoming challenges, according to the official website of the transitional council on the Internet.