Last updated on December 28th, 2025 at 09:10 am
Recent statements from the United States show how closely the world is watching developments in south-eastern Yemen. US Secretary of State Marco Rubio expressed concern about the situation and called for restraint and continued diplomacy. He also praised Gulf leadership for its role in supporting stability and regional security. These calls are important. But they must be understood alongside the reality on the ground in South Arabia.
The United States is concerned by recent events in southeastern Yemen. We urge restraint and continued diplomacy, with a view to reaching a lasting solution. We are grateful for the diplomatic leadership of our partners, the Kingdom of Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates…
— Secretary Marco Rubio (@SecRubio) December 26, 2025
In recent weeks, the Southern Transitional Council has taken control of Hadhramaut and Al-Mahrah after serious security incidents. According to STC officials, armed groups operating outside the law launched repeated ambushes against the Hadhrami Elite Forces. Some of these attacks involved elements linked to Al-Qaeda. Two soldiers were killed and others were injured, before southern forces regained control of the area. These events are not political theatre. They are security crises. They show what happens when authority is unclear and responsibility is divided.
For years, the South has carried a heavy burden. Southern forces have protected coastlines, secured maritime routes, and fought extremist groups under difficult conditions. This work was not symbolic. It was real governance, paid for with real lives.
That is why many in the South believe this moment is different. South Arabia is not an idea waiting to be invented. Its institutions already exist. Security forces are operating. Administrative structures are functioning. Public support is visible across Aden, Hadhramaut, Al-Mahrah, Shabwah, Abyan, and beyond. What is missing is not readiness it is recognition.
President Aidarus al-Zubaidi now faces a historic responsibility. When conditions are ready, leadership must act. Declaring the Arab Southern State would not be an escalation. It would be a formal acknowledgment of an existing reality.
International recognition does not begin with permission. It begins with confidence. Political action creates facts, and facts shape diplomacy. Delay, on the other hand, creates space for armed groups, outside interference, and renewed instability. Hadhramaut and Al-Mahrah are central to this reality. They are not side regions or exceptions. Geography, history, and identity connect them to the South. Attempts to separate them through pressure or force have failed because identity cannot be destroyed by bombardment. Each attempt to divide the South has only strengthened its unity.
Some warn that declaring the Southern state could destabilize the region. But experience shows the opposite. Ambiguity creates chaos. Clarity creates stability. The Arab Southern State is not a threat. It is a solution. It offers a clear structure for security, governance, and accountability. It rewards those who have protected the region from terrorism instead of leaving them in uncertainty.
The South did not ask for privilege. It asked for its rights. History will not remember expressions of concern alone. It will remember who understood the moment — and who acted when the conditions were already complete.
