ADEN, Yemen – Yemen's pro-secession Southern Transitional Council (STC) on Friday announced its self-dissolution and the closure of all its offices inside and outside the country, the state media reports.

The decision was made during a meeting of the STC's presidency, general secretariat and other affiliated bodies in Saudi Arabia's capital Riyadh, according to a statement released by the state-run Saba news agency.

The session reviewed the latest developments in Yemen's Hadramout and Al-Mahrah provinces and their "serious and painful repercussions."

Recent events and the failure of de-escalation efforts have heightened tensions and threatened social stability in southern Yemen and the region, prompting the leadership to reassess the council's role and responsibilities, the statement said.

"The Council was established to champion the cause of the people of the South and to help them achieve their aspirations, not to monopolize power or exclude others," it said. "The ultimate goal was to restore the southern state in accordance with the will and aspirations of its people."

The STC denied involvement in the decision to launch military operations in Hadramout and Al-Mahrah, saying that such actions harm southern unity and damage relations with the Saudi-led coalition.

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"In light of these developments, the continued existence of the STC no longer serves the purpose for which it was founded," reads the statement.

Accordingly, the STC announced the dissolution of all its principal and subsidiary bodies, reaffirming its commitment to pursuing the "just cause of the South." It said that the process will be advanced through preparations for a comprehensive southern dialogue conference under Saudi auspices.

The statement welcomed Riyadh's initiative to sponsor the dialogue, praising the kingdom's "clear and explicit commitments" and its concern for reaching solutions that reflect the will of the southern people.

The STC also urged political and social figures in southern Yemen to engage actively in the upcoming dialogue, hoping it will forge a unified vision and framework for resolving the southern issue.

Meanwhile, an STC official, speaking anonymously to Xinhua, said the council's supporters are preparing to call for participation in demonstrations scheduled for Saturday in the southern provinces of Aden and Hadramout.

Commenting on the STC's dissolution announcement, the official said that he had no confirmed information so far, as communication with the Riyadh delegation was "impossible." "We know nothing as of now," he explained, noting that delegation members are unreachable and their phones have reportedly been taken away.

On Wednesday, the Aden-based STC accused Saudi Arabia of "arbitrarily detaining a senior delegation" sent to Riyadh for political consultations, amid a sharp escalation in southern Yemen's volatile military and political situation.

Anwar Al-Tamimi, spokesman of the Aden-based STC, told Xinhua that more than 50 STC officials and "southern political figures were detained upon arrival in Riyadh and transferred to an undisclosed location."

On Thursday, the Saudi-led coalition in Yemen said that STC leader Aidarous Al-Zubaidi secretly fled the country and traveled to Somalia before reaching the United Arab Emirates after failing to attend planned peace talks in Riyadh.

Formed in 2017 and allegedly backed by the United Arab Emirates, the STC seeks southern Yemen's self-determination and eventual independence. Despite joining the Saudi-led coalition and integrating into Yemen's ruling PLC in 2022, the group continues to push for sovereignty for the south, fuelling recurring disputes over power-sharing and control of resources.