Full Analysis Summary
Yemen southern control shifts
Yemen's Saudi-backed, internationally recognised government announced it has retaken southern areas from the Southern Transitional Council (STC).
Presidential Leadership Council chief Rashad al-Alimi said government forces have recaptured Hadramout and al-Mahra and now control contested military bases.
Officials tied the advance to a Saudi-backed offensive that pushed STC fighters out of Hadramout, the presidential palace in Aden and military camps in al-Mahra after the STC seized those areas late last year.
The move follows widespread unrest in Aden, where thousands of STC supporters protested, waved the former South Yemen flag and called for independence.
TRT World reports that government forces have now entered Aden as the STC is losing ground across southern provinces.
Coverage Differences
Tone and emphasis
Al Jazeera (West Asian) frames the announcement as a government recapture and emphasizes the Saudi-backed offensive and mass protests in Aden; TRT World (West Asian) focuses on the shifting balance of power and the government entering Aden as the STC loses ground; The Hindu (Asian) highlights the diplomatic dimension—delegations and disappearances in Riyadh—and situates the military events within broader political friction. Each source reports the events but emphasizes different elements: Al Jazeera foregrounds the government's claim and protests, TRT World highlights battlefield movement, and The Hindu stresses diplomatic fallout.
Riyadh STC developments
Diplomatic developments and the fate of an STC delegation in Riyadh have complicated the narrative.
The Hindu reports a delegation of more than 50 STC members has been unreachable since arriving in Riyadh on Jan. 7 and compares the episode to the 2017 Saad Hariri incident.
Al Jazeera says a Riyadh conference of southern leaders will seek a new roadmap to end the violence.
Al Jazeera and The Hindu offer conflicting accounts about STC leader Aidarous al‑Zubaidi: Saudi sources say he was smuggled to the UAE, while the STC says he remained in Aden.
The Hindu also notes that Zubaidi has been removed from the eight-member Presidential Leadership Council.
Coverage Differences
Contradiction / disputed accounts
The Hindu (Asian) reports the STC delegation has been "unreachable" in Riyadh and cites comparisons to Saad Hariri’s 2017 case; Al Jazeera (West Asian) reports Riyadh will hold a conference to seek a new roadmap and says Zubaidi "was smuggled to the UAE—an act Riyadh accuses Abu Dhabi of facilitating," while The Hindu records that "the STC says he stayed in Aden" and that "Saudi sources say he fled to Abu Dhabi with UAE help." These sources therefore report conflicting claims about Zubaidi’s whereabouts and portray Riyadh’s role differently.
Gulf rivalry in southern Yemen
Reporting highlights a clear rift between Saudi Arabia and the UAE over southern Yemen.
TRT World and The Hindu say the UAE had historically backed the STC and is now at odds with Riyadh after the STC's sudden seizure of territory.
Al Jazeera reports that Riyadh accuses Abu Dhabi of facilitating Zubaidi's movement to the UAE.
Sources present the UAE both as an earlier patron of the STC and as the focus of Saudi accusations, underscoring how external Gulf rivalries shape on-the-ground alignments in southern Yemen.
Coverage Differences
Narrative focus and attribution
TRT World (West Asian) and The Hindu (Asian) emphasize the UAE’s historical support for the STC—TRT: "the UAE... had backed the Southern Transitional Council (STC) when it was formed in 2017"; The Hindu notes the UAE backed the STC while Saudi backs the Aden-based government—"Saudi backs the Aden-based government, while the UAE has backed the STC." Al Jazeera (West Asian) reports Riyadh "accuses Abu Dhabi of facilitating" Zubaidi’s smuggling, thereby presenting an accusation from Riyadh rather than an established fact. The difference lies in TRT and The Hindu describing UAE’s role historically, and Al Jazeera reporting Riyadh’s accusation about UAE’s present actions.
STC political and military fallout
Political consequences remain uncertain.
Al Jazeera reports the STC’s future is unclear, citing internal division over a reported dissolution.
The Hindu notes Zubaidi’s removal from the Presidential Leadership Council and describes arrests or disappearances of delegation members in Riyadh.
TRT World focuses on territory changing hands and the STC losing ground, portraying a movement under pressure while offering little detail on internal STC decisions.
Together, the sources indicate both military setbacks and political fragmentation within the STC, though they differ on whether internal or external drivers are to blame.
Coverage Differences
Missed information / emphasis
Al Jazeera (West Asian) states "The STC’s future is unclear: a delegation in Riyadh had announced the group’s dissolution, but STC leaders are divided over that decision," focusing on internal divisions; The Hindu (Asian) documents personnel moves and contested accounts—"Zubaidi has since been removed from the eight-member Presidential Leadership Council" and delegation members are "unreachable"—highlighting diplomatic fallout; TRT World (West Asian) concentrates on battlefield trends—"STC is losing ground"—and omits internal dissolution claims. These different emphases mean readers receive contrasting impressions of whether the crisis is driven chiefly by internal fracturing or external military/diplomatic pressure.
Media narratives on Yemen
All three outlets report that the government says it retook Hadramout and al-Mahra.
They also note that the Southern Transitional Council (STC) seized territory last year.
The reports state that Saudi-backed forces have pushed back STC fighters.
However, the outlets' narratives diverge on causes and responsibilities.
Al Jazeera emphasizes the Saudi-backed offensive and reports Riyadh’s accusation that Abu Dhabi facilitated Zubaidi’s removal.
The Hindu stresses the diplomatic mystery in Riyadh and competing claims about Zubaidi’s whereabouts.
TRT World foregrounds changing battlefield control and the STC losing ground.
Because the sources contain conflicting claims about Zubaidi and differ in emphasis between military action and diplomatic maneuvering, the overall picture remains partly ambiguous and contested.
Coverage Differences
Overall narrative divergence
All three sources report the same core events but prioritize different causes and actors: Al Jazeera (West Asian) reports governmental and Riyadh-centric claims including accusations against Abu Dhabi; The Hindu (Asian) focuses on delegation disappearances and contrasts competing claims about Zubaidi; TRT World (West Asian) focuses on territorial shifts and the STC losing ground. The divergence affects whether readers see the episode primarily as a military rollback, a diplomatic coercion in Riyadh, or an outcome of Gulf rivalry.