he UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) militia on the Yemeni island of Socotra has on Monday launched a new campaign of arrests against their opponents.
This was reported by Yemen News Portal, based on local sources.
Local sources said that the STC militia arrested Abdullah al-Bishhami, vice-chairman of a protest committee, and Saeed Farajhi, a leader in the committee. They were taken to an unknown destination.
The new arrests are part of an ongoing crackdown against the local leaders of the committee by the UAE, even though the protest movement had not carried out any actual events yet since the start of the campaign nearly a month ago.
The campaign coincided with UAE directives to close the island’s ports by land and sea under the pretext of “confronting thr coronavirus”, but the timing of the campaign indicates that the UAE is seeking to eliminate its opponents and prevent their flight from the island or the arrival of reinforcements to push the island towards a new conflict.
The STC militias imposed their control on the island about two years ago, after they expelled Hadi’s forces with the blessing of Saudi Arabia.