Southern Yemen separatists seize control of most of Aden

Jan. 30 (UPI) -- Southern separatists took control of most of the city of Aden, Yemen, on Tuesday after a United Arab Emirates fighter jet bombed the area.

Fighters from the Southern Resistance Forces -- a group seeking secession for southern Yemen -- seized the area around the presidential Al-Mashaiq Palace where Prime Minister Ahmed bin Daghar and members of his Cabinet are believed to be holed up.

Until this week, the separatists had been allied with the Yemeni government led by President Abdu Rabbo Mansour Hadi in their fight against Houthi rebels in the north.

The infighting has killed at least 36 people and injured 185 more, according to the Red Cross.

The Saudi-led Arab coalition to dislodge the Shiite Houthi rebels in the north called for an end to the fighting in a statement translated by the state-run Saudi Press Agency.

"The coalition again requests all parties to speed up the cessation of all clashes immediately and the end of all armed manifestations," the group said. "The coalition confirms that it will take all necessary measures to restore security and stability in Aden."

The United States, which also has supported the Saudi-led airstrike campaign, delivered its own call for peace.

"We call on all parties to refrain from escalation and further bloodshed. We also call for dialogue among all parties in Aden to reach a political solution State Department spokeswoman Heather Nauert said. "The Yemeni people are already facing a dire humanitarian crisis. Additional divisions and violence within Yemen will only increase their suffering. A political dialogue represents the only way to achieve a more stable, unified, and prosperous Yemen."

Fighters from the Southern Resistance Forces captured the base earlier on Tuesday, Al Jazeera reported.

This comes despite a cease-fire that was agreed upon by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates hours earlier.

"A plane from the Arab coalition, that said it had come to support legitimacy bombed the base of the Fourth Brigade. What a farce," Mukhtar al-Rahbi, an official in Yemen's government, said.

The seizure of the military base, which is located in Aden's northern Dar Saad district, is the largest gain for the separatist group since fighting began Sunday.

Fighting began after the Southern Transitional Council, the main group of the Southern Resistance Forces, ordered Hadi to fire his prime minister and his Cabinet.

The council accused Hadi's government of "rampant corruption" that resulted in a "deteriorating economic, security and social situation never before witnessed in the history of the south."