Tens of thousands of Yemenis rallied in Aden on Thursday in support of separatist forces who took over the southern port, the temporary seat of Yemen’s Saudi-backed government.

The development has exposed rifts in a Sunni Muslim military coalition.

The United Arab Emirates-backed southern separatists seized control of government military bases last weekend, fracturing the Saudi-led alliance battling the Houthi group.

Demonstrators demanded recognition of southerners’ right to self-rule in Aden, where the government of Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi is based after being ousted from power in the capital Sanaa by the Houthis in late 2014, Reuters reported.