*RIYADH: *Yemen’s internationally recognised government signed aSaudi-brokered power-sharing deal with southern separatists Tuesday aimedat ending a conflict simmering within the country’s civil war.
“This agreement will open a new period of stability in Yemen. The kingdomof Saudi Arabia stands with you,” Saudi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salmansaid at a signing ceremony in Riyadh aired on state television.
The deal will reportedly see the secessionist Southern Transitional Council(STC) handed a number of ministries, and the government return to Aden,according to officials and reports in Saudi media.
The UN special envoy for Yemen, Martin Griffiths, congratulated the twosides on the deal which he said would propel efforts to end the wider civilwar that has devastated the country.
“The signing of this agreement is an important step for our collectiveefforts to advance a peaceful settlement to the conflict in Yemen,” he saidin a statement.
“Listening to southern stakeholders is important to the political effortsto achieve peace in the country.”
Security Belt Forces — dominated by the STC — in August took control ofAden, which had served as the beleaguered government’s base since it wasousted from the capital Sanaa by Iran-backed Houthi rebels in 2014.
The clashes between the separatists and government forces, who for yearsfought on the same side against the Houthis, had raised fears the countrycould split apart with disastrous effects.
The warring factions in recent weeks held indirect talks mediated by SaudiArabia in the kingdom’s western city of Jeddah, which culminated in thedeal signed in Riyadh.
Both Yemen’s President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi and STC leader Aidarousal-Zoubeidi attended the ceremony.
Analysts said the deal prevented the violent disintegration of Yemen butthat secessionist sentiment could resurface in the future.
“In the short term, the agreement will allow the coalition to sticktogether and focus their efforts on fighting the Houthis instead of eachother,” said Elisabeth Kendall, senior research fellow at Oxford University.
“In the long term, it simply kicks the can down the road on southernsecession. Southern ambitions won’t just go away. The question is, can theybe temporarily reined in.”
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The military coalition led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates(UAE) intervened in Yemen in 2015 as the Houthi rebels closed in on Aden,prompting Hadi to flee into Saudi exile.
The conflict has since killed tens of thousands of people — most of themcivilians — and driven millions more to the brink of famine in what theUnited Nations calls the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.
The south was an independent state before being forcibly unified in 1990,and the STC has said it wants to regain its lost status.
The separatists have received support and training from the UAE, eventhough it is a key pillar in the Saudi-led coalition.
Abu Dhabi accuses Yemeni authorities of allowing religious elements to gaininfluence within their ranks.
The mistrust between the allies has posed a headache for regionalpowerhouse Saudi Arabia, which remains focused on fighting the Houthis whoare aligned with Riyadh’s archfoe Iran.
Nevertheless, Abu Dhabi Crown Prince Mohammed bin Zayed Al-Nahyan tweeted apicture of himself and Prince Mohammed walking hand in hand with Hadi afterTuesday’s ceremony.
The Houthis have offered to halt all attacks on Saudi Arabia as part of awider peace initiative, later repeating their proposal despite continuedair strikes from the Saudi-led coalition.
The offer came after the Houthis claimed responsibility for attacks onSeptember 14 against two key Saudi oil installations that temporarilyknocked out half of the OPEC giant’s production.
Riyadh and Washington, however, blamed Iran for the attacks — a chargedenied by Tehran. -APP/AFP
