Separatists advance on presidential palace in southern Yemen

SANAA, Yemen — Yemeni separatists backed by the United Arab Emirates seize 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 say.

The security officials say fighters loyal to the so-called Southern Transitional Council fought all way to the gates of the palace in central Aden, forcing troops loyal to President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi to abandon their positions. The officials say Hadi’s prime minister and several Cabinet members would soon leave Yemen for Riyadh, where Hadi is already based, but by late Tuesday it was not yet clear if they had done so.

Saudi troops who have been guarding the palace for months stop the separatists at the gate, preventing them from entering. A senior government official tells The Associated Press that Prime Minister Ahmed Obaid Bin Daghar and several ministers remain inside. The official decline to say whether the prime minister was to leave Aden. All officials speak on condition of anonymity under regulations.

— AP