Yemeni government forces and Houthis report heavy losses in rival attacks
Both sides claimed to have inflicted major casualties as fighting continued across Yemen and the Saudi-led coalition reported intercepting Houthi missiles.
By Hiroshi Ferrari ·
Forces supporting Yemen’s internationally recognised government and Houthi fighters reported inflicting heavy casualties in exchanges of attacks, with government forces saying about 190 Houthi commanders and fighters had been killed or wounded. The competing accounts came as fighting continued against a backdrop of regional tensions linked to the US-Israel war on Iran.
Government military spokesman Majed Abdullah al-Nuzaili said on Tuesday that Houthi positions had been targeted across six governorates: Lahij, Taiz, Marib, al-Jawf, Hajjah and al-Bayda. His account listed at least 29 air strikes, 39 drone attacks, 62 rockets fired and 744 artillery attacks. He said preliminary reports from the field put Houthi casualties at about 190 and indicated that as many as 130 vehicles and other combat assets had been damaged or destroyed. Al Jazeera could not independently verify the battlefield claims.
The Saudi-backed government is conducting a counteroffensive called Operation Dawn of Yemen, seeking to recover territory it lost to the Houthis in September. The Iran-allied armed group is also called Ansar Allah, an Arabic name meaning Supporters of God. A Saudi-led coalition has provided air support for the government’s ground operations, while Houthi missile attacks against Saudi Arabia have targeted airports and oil facilities.
The Houthis also reported casualties among government-aligned forces on Tuesday. Their spokesman, Yahya Saree, said attacks in the al-Madaribah and Ras al-Ara areas of Lahij had killed and wounded a large number of opposing fighters. He said earlier attacks in al-Jawf had left dozens more government soldiers dead or injured.
In a separate account, Saree accused Saudi-backed Yemeni forces of carrying out 109 air strikes and missile attacks against Houthi-held Sanaa and positions in al-Jawf, Saada, Taiz, Lahij and Marib. He said many women and children had been killed or wounded. The Saudi-led coalition did not immediately confirm those strikes.
The coalition had earlier announced that it intercepted two Houthi missiles heading towards the Saudi capital, Riyadh, and a third directed at the kingdom’s southern region. The Houthis said their targets were Riyadh and an Aramco oil facility at Abqaiq in Saudi Arabia’s Eastern province.
The continuing hostilities have taken a substantial human toll. According to the World Health Organization, at least 1,771 people have been killed in Yemen since August and at least 7,959 wounded. More than 300,000 people have also been displaced.
