Updated

The former governor of Yemen's southern city of Aden, recently sacked by the president, says he has formed a new "transitional political council of the south," a week after thousands of pro-secessionist Yemenis rallied in his support.

Aden's governor, Aidarous al-Zubaidi, is close to the United Arab Emirates, a key member of a Saudi-led coalition fighting Shiite Houthi rebels in Yemen since 2015.

Relations between Yemen's President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi and the UAE are tense over allegations that the Emiratis are offering patronage to southern Yemeni politicians campaigning for secession as well as what he sees as UAE violations of his country's sovereignty.

Aden has been the seat of Hadi's government since the Houthis seized the capital, Sanaa, in 2014.