Saudi Arabia and the UAE on Sunday sought to dispel any notion of a rift over fighting in southern Yemen, renewing a call for dialogue between the warring sides.

Yemen’s Saudi-backed government was ousted last month from key areas in the south by (STC) , exposing simmering divisions that analysts say undermines the joint campaign against Iran-linked Huthi rebels.

But in a joint statement released by both countries’ state media, the Gulf powers sought to appear united, as they "reaffirmed continued support for the legitimate government of Yemen".

The two countries called on the warring parties to immediately cease "all military operations" and "stop media propaganda" that fuels hostilities, the statement added. Last month, fighting between the separatists and supporters of the government opened a new front in Yemen’s complex war.

The Security Belt Forces -- dominated by the secessionist Southern Transitional Council -- took control of the southern city of Aden, which has served as the government’s base since it was ousted from the capital Sanaa by the Huthis in 2014.

The clashes between separatists and government forces, who for years fought on the same side against the Huthis, have raised fears that the country could break apart entirely.

The coalition intervened in Yemen in March 2015, as the Huthi rebels closed in on Aden, prompting President Abedrabbo Mansour Hadi to flee into Saudi exile. The conflict has since killed tens of thousands of people, most of them civilians, and driven millions more to the brink of famine in what the United Nations calls the world’s worst humanitarian crisis.

AFP