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Major General Abdulrahman bin Zur’a al-Mahrami, known as Abu Zur’a, has taken on a more prominent role in southern Yemen’s security landscape. The Nation’s Shield Forces said it has tasked him with preventing clashes in Aden. This comes amid escalating political tensions involving Aidarous al-Zubaidi, head of the Southern Transitional Council.
It also follows new claims about al-Zubaidi’s whereabouts.
The Nation’s Shield Forces on Wednesday assigned Abdulrahman al-Mahrami, known as Abu Zur’a al-Mahrami, to enforce security, prevent any clashes in Aden, spare its residents from instability, protect lives and property, and coordinate with the Nation’s Shield Forces.
Rashed al-Alimi, chairman of the Presidential Leadership Council, met Abu Zur’a and other council members in Riyadh after al-Zubaidi’s surprise disappearance, amid Saudi accusations he fled to an unknown location despite earlier indications he was heading to the kingdom for a conference on southern Yemen.
Abu Zur’a, who until last week had been a close ally of al-Zubaidi and part of the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council, is now being praised by Saudi media, which is portraying him as the kingdom’s new ally.
According to Arab media reports, Abu Zur’a arrived in Riyadh a few days ago and met with Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman, even though he had been among those who signed a statement rejecting Saudi measures in southern Yemen.
Abu Zur’a is a prominent military commander and a member of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council. His full name is Abdulrahman bin Zur’a al-Mahrami.
He is regarded as one of Yemen’s leading military figures. He was born in 1980 in the Yafa’a area of Abyan governorate, and his profile rose during the Yemen war through his leadership of the Southern Giants Brigades, which played a decisive role in confronting the Houthis and in regaining control of strategic areas along the western coast and in Shabwa.
Abu Zur’a completed his secondary education, and reports say he memorized the Quran in full, before moving to the Dar al-Hadith center in Dammaj, Saada governorate.
This period helped shape his Salafi background, one that would later be reflected in the formations he led and in his restrained, tightly controlled media profile.
Before the outbreak of the war in 2015, Abu Zur’a was neither a public figure nor a political actor. Rather, multiple Yemeni media sources indicate that he owned a small shop selling honey and natural herbs in the Sheikh Othman district of Aden, and lived what was described as a quiet life, away from public affairs.
In April 2022, he was appointed a member of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, which assumed the management of the country after power was transferred from former president Abdrabbuh Mansur Hadi.
Al-Mahrami has also served as vice president of the Southern Transitional Council since May 2023.
He is known for his hard-line stance on counterterrorism and for strengthening security in Aden and other liberated areas.
He has represented Yemen in key regional engagements, most recently in a meeting two days ago in Riyadh with Saudi Defense Minister Prince Khalid bin Salman to discuss political and security developments in Yemen.
These developments came after the Saudi-led Coalition to Restore Legitimacy in Yemen said earlier today that al-Zubaidi, who had previously informed Saudi Arabia that he would take part in a broad, inclusive southern Yemeni dialogue conference in Riyadh, had fled to an unknown location without notifying other Southern Transitional Council members.
The coalition also said al-Zubaidi moved large forces, including armored vehicles, combat vehicles, heavy and light weapons, and ammunition, from the Hadeed and al-Sulban camps toward al-Dhalea around midnight.
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