Forces loyal to Yemen’s Southern Transitional Council (STC) said on Thursday they had seized control of oilfields in the eastern province of Hadhramaut.

Members of the Hadhrami Elite Forces said they had taken control of checkpoints protecting oil installations in the Hadhramaut Highlands, in a statement reported by the STC-affiliated Aden Independent Channel.

The HEF said "disagreements among the leaders of the armed groups [Hadhramaut Protection Forces] led to the intervention".

Their rivals, the Hadhramaut Protection Forces, part of the Hadhramaut Tribal Alliance, had seized the oilfields about a week earlier as part of an escalation in tension with the STC, which is a part of Yemen's internationally recognised government.

The STC said on Wednesday it had moved troops into the oil-rich province to confront a “rebellion” led by tribal forces demanding greater control over local resources. “We are aiming at controlling all of Hadhramaut,” an STC official Said.

The STC said the rebellion was led by Amr bin Habrish, the provincial under secretary. 

It said his men had entered the oilfields last week and insisted on more control and revenue, forcing oil companies to halt operations.

After losing the oilfields to the STC on Wednesday, Mr bin Habrish launched an attempt to retake them on Thursday morning. 

That was pushed back, resulting in the death of four STC fighters.

Amr Al Bidh, an STC official, said the offensive had “achieved his goals” and the situation in Hadhramaut was “back to normal”.

The STC’s next steps will be to “enhance stability” in the governorate and continue oil production, he added. 

He said there were no plans to extend the military operation to Mahrah, the neighbouring governorate to the east of Hadhramaut, despite videos circulating of supporters of the southern cause pulling up the flag of the former republic of South Yemen.

Mr Al Bidh said that under the control of government forces, Hadhramaut had become a supply route for weapons smuggled to the Houthis, Al Qaeda and even Al Shabab in Somalia, and that is why STC forces decided to move in.

On Tuesday, STC spokesman Anwar Al Tamimi accused Mr bin Habrish of aligning with extremist groups. 

“Al Qaeda, ISIS and other armed groups are exploiting the vulnerability of the situation, allowing for infiltration and dire consequences,” he said.

Hadhramaut is Yemen's largest and most geographically diverse governorate. It stretches from the Arabian Sea in the south to the northern border with Saudi Arabia. 

It is a crucial land bridge connecting the nation to Saudi Arabia and Oman.

Yemen was plunged into civil war after the Houthis seized Sanaa and much of northern Yemen in 2014, forcing the government to move south to the port city of Aden.