New Yemen government formed with Shaya Mohsin al-Zindani as prime minister

Yemen’s Saudi-backed presidential council announces the formation of the new government.Published On 6 Feb 2026Yemen’s Saudi-backed presidential leadership council has issued a decree to form a new government, with Shaya Mohsen al-Zindani confirmed as the country’s prime minister.Al-Zindani will also continue to serve as foreign minister, the state-run news agency Saba reported on Friday.Recommended Stories list of 3 itemslist 1 of 3‘Stripped naked’: Yemeni detainee recounts torture in UAE-run prisonlist 2 of 3Five killed in ‘treacherous’ attack on military convoy in Yemenlist 3 of 3Hope flickers as lights return to war-scarred Adenend of listLast month, the council accepted the resignation of former Prime Minister Salem bin Breik and asked al-Zindani to form a cabinet.The new 34-member cabinet includes 10 ministers from the previous government and three women, Saba reported.Marwan Faraj bin Ghanim was named as minister of finance, while Mohamed Abdullah Ali was confirmed as oil minister. Taher Ali al-Uqaili will serve as defence minister, according to the presidential decree.The government’s formation follows months of consultations held in Riyadh, aimed at easing tensions between the Yemeni government and the main southern Yemeni separatist group, the Southern Transitional Council (STC), which announced its dissolution on January 9.In December, the STC – which Saudi Arabia says is backed by the UAE – gained control of areas across southern and eastern Yemen, advancing ‌to within reach of the Saudi border, which the kingdom considered a threat to its national security. Saudi-backed fighters have ‌since largely retaken those areas.The two Gulf states have recently also faced friction over numerous other matters, ranging from geopolitics to oil output.Saudi Arabia and the UAE had ‌previously worked together in a coalition battling the Iran-backed Houthis in Yemen’s civil war, which led to one of the world’s worst humanitarian crises.