Fighting in Aden threatens de-escalation efforts in Yemen

Fighting restarted on Wednesday despite attempts by UAE and Saudi Arabia to convene talks

Fighters of the Security Belt Force, dominated by fighters of the Southern Transitional Council (STC) which seeks independence for south Yemen, ride atop a tank in Yemen's southern coastal town of ShuShow more

Fighting shook Aden again  on Wednesday when government forces attacked the Yemeni city's eastern suburbs and exchanged shelling with local southern fighters.

Forces belonging to the internationally backed government have not heeded the Saudi-led coalition's call to  de-escalate. Yemeni government forces are being backed by Al Islah militants.

Government forces  on Wednesday tried to take advantage of the Southern Transitional Council's commitment to de-escalation and attempted to push forward on Aden, with residents describing the attack.

Fighters allied with the STC have been a  chief component of pro-government forces battling alongside President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi's fighters against the Houthi rebels.

The Saudi-led Arab Coalition backs both the government and the STC. Recent fighting caused a rift between the two Yemeni allies.

Saudi Arabia and the UAE have called for an end to the fighting and pushed for dialogue to resolve the crisis, but the Yemeni government has refused to sit down for talks.

The western-backed coalition intervened in Yemen in March 2015 after the Iran-aligned Houthi movement ousted Mr Hadi in a coup as they seized the capital, Sanaa.

His government relocated to Aden. Witnesses said clashes could be heard in Al Arech and Khor Maksar districts in Aden and around  the airport of Aden, which has been under the control of the STC since it was retaken from the Houthis in 2015.

Fears have been raised that the escalation will undermine attempts to stabilise Aden.

Meanwhile, the UN continues to seek a ceasefire in the port city of Hodeidah, the main entry point for food and aid for millions of Yemenis affected by the war.

The truce brokered in Sweden last December is considered a first step towards finding a political resolution to the conflict.

Martin Griffiths, the UN envoy to Yemen, met members of the Yemeni government in Riyadh and discussed the ongoing push for a peace deal.

“Both parties welcomed my proposal on the implementation of the Hodeidah agreement and provided comments,” the envoy tweeted.