Saudi Arabian forces have taken over control of Yemen’s southern port of Aden as part of efforts to end a power struggle between the Saudi-backed Yemeni government and Southern Transitional Council (STC) , four sources familiar with the matter said.

Last week the United Arab Emirates, Riyadh’s main partner in a Saudi-led coalition battling Yemen’s Houthi group, started withdrawing troops from Aden, seemingly to pave the way for a deal to end the local standoff.

The Southern Transitional Council are part of the Sunni Muslim coalition that intervened in Yemen in March 2015 to try to restore the government of President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi, which was ousted from the capital, Sanaa, in 2014 by the Houthis, who are aligned with Iran.

In August, the Southern Transitional Council (STC), turned on Hadi’s government and seized its interim base of Aden, sparking wider clashes that opened a new front in the war.

An official handover to a Saudi commander took place last week under which he would oversee security in the city and its suburbs, two other sources familiar with the matter said.

The coalition spokesman and the Emirati government did not immediately respond to a request for comment.

Saudi Arabia has been hosting indirect talks for a month between Hadi’s government and separatist leaders. Sources had said the two sides were close to agreeing a Saudi proposal to give the STC seats in the cabinet and place separatist forces under government command.Reuters