Jan 7 - The leader of Yemen's Southern Transitional Council (STC), Aidarous al-Zubaidi, failed to board a plane set to take him to Riyadh, and fled instead to an unknown destination, the Saudi-backed coalition in the country said on Wednesday.

The remarks came amid efforts to end fighting that erupted last month between the STC, backed by the United Arab Emirates, and Yemen's Saudi-backed internationally recognised government, which has triggered a major feud between the Gulf allies.