Militia affiliated to the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) have kidnapped three Yemeni officials opposed to the UAE, Israel presence on the island of Socotra, according to reports.
Local news source, the Socotra Post, disclosed the names of at least ten officials who had been arbitrarily detained following a campaign to repress anti-occupation activists.
The Post also reported that Muhammad Abdullah, the media secretary to the official governor of Socotra, saying that he was pursued by STC militia in an attempt to arrest him. He explained in a post on Facebook that he had escaped being detained following the STC’s crackdown on activists on the island.
Following the normalisation of ties between the UAE and Israel there have been recent reports of the arrival of Israeli and Emirati intelligence delegations on the island, amid previous reports of plans to establish a spy base on the island.
On Monday, demonstrations were reported in the Qalansiya district of Socotra rejecting the presence of the STC and UAE and Saudi interference on the island, demanding a return to Yemeni sovereignty. Yesterday Al-Mahriyah TV channel broadcast similar protests which are said to have taken place in the city of Zanzibar, the capital of the southern province of Abyan and affirmed their support for the Palestinian cause.
