Yemeni separatists backed by the United Arab Emirates seized the area around the presidential palace in the southern city of Aden on Tuesday after fierce battles with forces loyal to the internationally-backed government, security officials said. Elsewhere in Yemen, al-Qaida militants attacked a checkpoint in the southern Shabwa province, killing at least 12 soldiers in an area where Yemeni troops had claimed victory against the extremist group. Saudi troops who have been guarding the palace for months stopped the separatists at the gate, preventing them from entering. In the northern district of Dar Saad, witnesses said coalition jets bombed a military camp of Hadi's forces before separatists took control of it. Over the past year, the UAE has trained and armed its own forces in Yemen, including the separatists, in a direct challenge to Hadi.

Source: ABC News January 30, 2018 06:56 UTC