A government military offensive in Shabwa governorate in southeastern Yemen has paused after tribal mediation efforts succeeded in releasing a kidnapped student, according to an official in the local authority.

Army forces withdrew from the area in Shabwa’s Habban district, in the Qumaishi tribal area near the border of Al-Mahfad district in Abyan governorate, after receiving the student, Turki Mohammed Lak’ab, the official said, noting that the Lak'ab is the brother of Special Forces Commander Brig. Gen. Abdrabbuh Lak'ab in Shabwa’s capital Ataq.

Gunmen kidnapped Lak'ab last Monday to pressure the security and military agencies to release prisoners loyal to the UAE-backed Southern Transitional Council (STC) who were captured by the army in September.

In recent weeks, the road connecting the two governorates has witnessed a steady stream of ambushes and direct confrontations between the internationally recognized government’s army and forces loyal to the STC. Saudi forces stationed in Aden governorate are in the process of implementing a power sharing deal, known the Riyadh agreement, which seeks to distribute power more evenly among the two groups in order to calm tensions and dissuade the STC from seceding.

The STC reportedly suspended its participation in the Riyadh agreement due to the government’s heavy-handed approach in Shabwa in recent days.