Jan. 8 (UPI) -- Separatist leader Aidarous al-Zubaidi exited Yemen with the help of the United Arab Emirates after he was charged with treason and expelled from Yemen's Presidential Leadership Council.

Yemen is threatening to fracture even further, exposing a growing rift between Middle East powers Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates.

Saudi Arabia alleged on Thursday that the United Arab Emirates smuggled a separatist leader in Yemen wanted for treason out of the country

At least 80 fighters from Yemen’s Southern Transitional Council (STC) have been killed in clashes with Saudi-backed forces since Friday, a military official said Sunday. The ongoing offensive, aimed…

Separatist forces in Yemen say at least seven people were killed in Saudi airstrikes on Friday, as tensions deepen between regional allies. The strikes come while the Saudi-backed governor of Hadramout province says “peaceful” efforts are underway to retake military bases abandoned by Emirati-backed separatists, highlighting the latest escalation in the rift between Riyadh and Abu Dhabi. Once united in their campaign against Houthi rebels, the two Gulf powers are now backing rival factions in Yemen’s ongoing conflict. Carys Garland reports the latest.

Close allies for years, Saudi Arabia and the UAE have been diverging over regional policy and other issues. Read more at straitstimes.com. Read more at straitstimes.com.