Yemeni army closing in on Sana’a

Dubai: The Yemeni army is nearing the Arhab district and the capital, Sana’a, Brigadier General Abdou Abdullah Bamajalli, Spokesman of the Armed Forces and Consultant at the General Staff of Yemen, said Sunday.

Bamajalli told the Yemen News Agency that battles are continuing in an effort to liberate the Nehim district just outside of Sana’a.

Over the weekend, the army liberated a series of strategic mountains, including Dorah, Al Ayani, Al Safeh, Al Dhabeeb, Al Tibab Al Hamaraa, west of Al Garn mountain, and Al Safeenah.

Dozens of Iran-backed Al Houthi militants and Republican Guards soldiers loyal to the ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh were killed and captured in fierce clashes outside rebel-held Sana’a.

The pro-government news site 26sepnews.net reported that the militants surrendered when government forces stormed their military camp in the rugged mountains of Nehim district.

Last Wednesday, forces loyal to the internationally-recognised government, backed by Saudi-led coalition fighter jets and military advisers, staged an offensive aimed at securing major gains on the Nehim battlefield.

The ministry said the captured soldiers were from Brigade 63 Republican Guards.

Ali Mohsen Al Ahmar, the vice-president currently based in Marib, is in charge of leading the Nehim offensive.

The advance around Sana’a comes amid a major offensive by Yemen army troops launched in early January dubbed Golden Arrow Operation which aimed at liberating the entire western coast of the country from Al Houthi fighters, including the port city of Hodeida in order to protect the vital Bab Al Mandab Strait from Al Houthi missiles and cut Al Houthis off from their weapons supply coming into seaports from Iran.

Hadi came to power in early 2012 after massive Arab Spring protests ousted Saleh. He was forced to decamp to the city of Aden after escaping Al Houthi-imposed house arrest after the rebels took over the government in a coup in 2014.

Since then, Hadi has shifted government headquarters to Aden from where he has led an offensive to liberate Al Houthi-occupied territories.

With help from the Saudi-led Arab coalition, it has achieved widespread gains in many provinces, but Al Houthis still control the capital, Sana’a, and most northern provinces including Hodeida, Ibb, Mahweet, Yareem, Amran, Baydha and Hajja.