Hadramout (South24) 

Thousands of citizens gathered on Saturday in the city of Mukalla, the capital of Hadramout governorate, South Yemen, to declare their backup and support for the popular upraising that has been going on in the governorate for weeks.

This major event came in response to a call made by the STC, a few days ago, in which it called on the people of the governorate to support the popular committees that set up civil checkpoints which blocked oil and fish trucks from leaving Hadramout.

Read more: Hadramout: Popular Anger Block Oil and Fish Exports

"South24" correspondent in Mukalla stated that the mass crowds that participated in the event "came from all parts of Hadramout governorate", and other Southerners also participated, including the STC Office in Shabwa.

The mass event in the city of Mukalla, Hadramout governorate, in support of the popular upraising, December 25, 2021 (South24, Abdullah Al-Shadli)

The crowds raised the national flags of the former state of South Yemen, and sang its national anthem.

In a speech to the crowd, the director of the STC Office in Hadramout, Colonel Saeed Al-Mohammadi, said that "patience has run out," stressing that they will not remain silent in front of what he described as "the gangs that steal the wealth of Hadramout."

The head of the Popular Escalation Committee in the governorate, tribal sheikh Saeed Al-Jabri, confirmed that "Hadramout will not allow oil export unless the rights and demands are fully implemented."

The head of the "Hadramout Alliance and the Inclusive Hadramout Conference bloc", Salem bin Smaida, threatened to completely stop the export of oil from Hadramout and close its extraction facilities, stressing to the protesters that they would remain "steadfast until the demands of the General Hadramout Meeting are addressed."

Local authority agreement

After meetings that brought together the outcomes of the "General Hadramout Meeting" with the Hadramout local authority led by Major General Faraj al-Bahsani, the authority announced its support for the meeting's demands, and pledged to contact the internationally recognized Yemeni government to respond to them.

A statement issued by the two parties included 25 demands and proposals representing the outcomes of the Hadramout General Meeting, which was held by the main societal, civil and tribal factions in Hadramout on October 27. [1]

These demands included unifying Hadramout militarily, and the removal of the 1st Military District forces, most of whose soldiers belong to North Yemen, from the governorate, and relocate them to the battle fronts against the Houthis.

It also included demands related to Hadramout's oil and fish resources, halting their depletion and looting, improving the living and service situation in the governorate, and extending the control of the Hadrami Elite Forces across Hadramout. 

It should be noted that this vast and oil-rich governorate is already divided into the Coast and Wadi regions. While the local authority and the Hadrami Elite Forces control the stable Coast regions, the pro-Islah military forces are stationed in the chaotic Wadi and Desert regions.

Messages from Mukalla

In the final statement of this event, the attendees affirmed their full backup and support for the popular upraising in the governorate, and the outcomes of the Hadramout General Meeting. 

The statement said that this mass mobilization today "comes in confirmation of the support of Hadramout and all of South," stressing the continuation of this upraise "until all demands are implemented," and warning from "the use of force against the will of the people of Hadramout."

The statement renewed Hadramout's mandate for the STC President, Major General Aidrous Al-Zubaidi, to achieve "the aspirations of the Southerners and build their state," stressing "Hadramout's geographical unity within the frame of South Arabia."

The mass event in the city of Mukalla, Hadramout governorate, in support of the popular upraising, December 25, 2021 (South24, Abdullah Al-Shadli)

The statement called on the Saudi-led Arab Coalition to "empower the people of Hadramout from their land, and transfer the military forces from the Wadi to the battlefronts against the Houthis," stressing at the same time that it stands by the Coalition in the battle with the Iran-backed rebels.

The statement warned of what it considered "settlement operations and demographic change under the cover of the IDP" in Hadramout and all of South Yemen governorates and stressed the need for Hadramout to be a "single military region."

The statement stressed the need to "liberate oil exploration and production in Hadramout from the influence of the Houthis and groups supporting terrorism," calling on oil companies to move their offices from Houthi-controlled Sanaa to the capital, Aden.

According to well-informed sources, the Hadrami movement in various districts of the Coast and Wadi regions will not stop without radical reforms, noting that the message that the people of Hadramout want to convey through their escalation only expresses the impatience they have reached as a result of the failed policies towards their governorate.

Read more: The Grassroot Movement in Hadramout: Why Now?

South24 Center for News and Studies

Photo: The mass event in the city of Mukalla in Hadramout governorate in support of the popular upraising, December 25, 2021 (South24, Abdullah Al-Shadli)