Abu Dhabi: The Yemeni army continued to make advances in the battlefronts in the Marib, Taiz and Hajjah provinces, dealing the Iran-backed Al Houthi militias heavy losses, military sources said.
At least 250 Al Houthis were killed in the fiercest battles yet to take place in the three provinces in six years, the sources added.
The crisis escalated in 2015 when a Saudi-led military coalition launched a devastating air campaign aimed at rolling back Al Houthi territorial gains.
Tens of thousands of Yemenis, including civilians, are believed to have been killed in the conflict, which has led to one of the world’s worst humanitarian crisis as millions remain at risk of starvation.
Defense Minister Mohammed Al Maqdashi stressed on Tuesday that the legitimate authorities were determined to restore the state’s authority and end the Al Houthi coup.
The people, armed forces and legitimate leadership are determined to defeat the militias and liberate the Yemenis from the crimes, violations and suffering imposed by the terrorist Al Houthis, he added as he toured the Al Kasara frontlines, west of Marib.
He said that the Al Houthis had amassed all of their forces, tanks and weapons, some of which they had seized and others which were provided by Tehran, towards their final stand on the border between Marib and Al Jawf.
Their forces, however, have fallen before the perseverance of the army, he declared.
On the ground, the military managed to turn around Al Houthis lines in Al Kasara and cut their supply routes amid heavy fighting and coalition air strikes that destroyed the militias’ reinforcements.
A field source said at least 80 Al Houthis were killed and dozens wounded in the fighting. The coalition destroyed six Al Houthi vehicles that were bringing in reinforcements, killing everyone on board.
In Hajjah, military media said 28 militants were killed during battles with the army on the Abs district front. Field sources estimated that some 100 Houthis have been killed in two days of fighting there.
Government forces have made significant advances on the Jabal Al Habshi front west of Taiz amid a complete collapse in Al Houthi ranks. The forces launched a widescale attack on the Al Ainain front, liberating several areas, military sources said.
Dozens of Al Houthis were killed and injured in the fighting, they added.
The army underlined the importance of regions that were liberated north of Jabal Al Habshi, saying that they overlook the main route (Hajda-al-Ramada) that connects Taiz city to the Hodeidah province.
Government forces in Taiz are seeking to capture the strategic town of Al Burj and complete the liberation of northwestern regions in the province.
In retaliation to their losses on various fronts, the Al Houthis fired a ballistic missile at residential neighborhoods in northwestern parts of Marib city.
Medical sources in Taiz said that Al Houthi shelling on villages in Maqbana left a child dead and another wounded.
Yemeni rights groups have said Al Houthi ballistic missiles and armed drone attacks on residential and civilian areas in Marib have killed 918 civilians, including women and children.
