Separatist forces in Yemen have surrounded the palace of the internationally-recognized president in the interim capital of Aden, throwing the southern Arabian nation into further political chaos.
The fall of Aden ends two days of fighting between troops loyal to President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi and forces with the Southern Transitional Council, a group formed last year to revive the former independent state of South Yemen. The former states of North and South Yemen were merged under one flag in 1990.
The STC had demanded that Hadi dismiss the government of Prime Minister Ahmed Obeid bin Daghr by Sunday, accusing it of corruption and mismanagement. The International Committee of the Red Cross says at least 36 people have been killed in the fighting since Sunday.
The fighting split the Saudi-led coalition formed after Houthi rebels chased Hadi's government out of the capital, Sanaa, in northern Yemen.
Saudi-led coalition airstrikes trying to oust the Houthis have obliterated entire civilian neighborhoods, including schools and hospitals. Yemen is also battling a deadly cholera outbreak and a possible famine. The U.N. estimates about 80 percent of Yemenis are in desperate need of food, medicine and clean water.
