"A massive rally was staged by thousands of supporters in Exhibition Square in Aden, southern Yemen, in response to a call by the President of the Southern Transitional Council (STC), Aidarous Al-Zubaidi, endorsing his constitutional declaration. Earlier this month, Al Zubaidi announced a 'two-year transitional phase' aimed at restoring the independence of South Yemen to be accompanied by a public referendum by 2028.   Footage, filmed on Friday, shows the participants hoisting flags of the People's Democratic Republic of Yemen and photos of Al Zubaidi while chanting, 'With soul, with blood, we sacrifice for you, South' and 'South is a free state'. "We went out in response to President Aidarous Al-Zubaidi's invitation and in support of the STC's statement. We say to the people of the South: stay steadfast, our state is imminent, and we are at Abu Qassem's disposal," Fahd Ali, one of the protesters, said. Saleh Al Dhalai, another rally participant, outlined that "there is no sound but the sound of the people, no decision but the decision of the people, and only what the people of the South decide will be realised. The people of the South are not under any custody whatsoever." In a post on X, the STC's Aden Independent Channel announced on Wednesday that "President Al-Zubaidi calls on the people of South Arabia to gather in the capital Aden next Friday afternoon to endorse the constitutional declaration and call for the release of the Council delegation being detained in Riyadh." In a televised address, a faction of the STC announced its self-dissolution while attending a dialogue meeting in Riyadh which the kingdom called for to comprise the Southern components.   In a post on his X account, Saudi Defence Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman hailed the decision as 'courageous', saying that the South is now a legitimate path sponsored by the Kingdom and supported and endorsed by the international community through the Riyadh Conference.  Anwar al-Tamimi, the STC's spokesperson, said on X that only the full council, under its president, can take council-related decisions. The spokesperson for the Arab coalition said in a statement that the STC president 'fled to an unknown destination', a claim that was denied by the STC's spokesperson, who affirmed in a post on 'X' on the same day that 'President Aidarous Al-Zubaidi is maintaining his duties from Aden's capital and overseeing his people directly'."