Yemeni government forces say 1,860 Houthi fighters were “neutralised” during 2,103 military operations, according to a social media post.
Yemeni government forces said they have “neutralised” 1,860 Houthi fighters since launching a large-scale counter-offensive to retake territory under the control of the Houthis, an armed group also known as Ansar Allah (Arabic for Supporters of God).
The spokesperson for the internationally recognised government’s military said in a social media post early on Thursday it had carried out 2,103 “precise targeting operations” against Houthi military positions across several fronts as part of the ongoing “Dawn of Yemen” operation.
The Yemeni government, which is backed by Saudi Arabia, also says its forces have captured strategic mountain positions in western Taiz overlooking the coast.
Rashad al-Alimi, chairman of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council, announced on Sunday the “Dawn of Yemen” operation to retake all Houthi-held territory, including the capital, Sanaa, which the Iran-backed group has controlled since 2014.
Battles in Yemen have focused in recent days on areas around the Bab al-Mandeb Strait, a shipping route that has become more crucial for energy exports since the conflict between the US and Iran restricted trade through the Strait of Hormuz.
Forces aligned with the Yemeni government launched an operation on Tuesday to capture strategic territory near the strait and around the city of Mocha, which the Houthis captured in September.
Coalition targeting
The Saudi-led coalition fighting in Yemen said on Wednesday it destroyed 82 Houthi military targets in the Yemeni governorates of Saada, Hodeidah, al-Jawf and Marib.
The spokesperson for the coalition said in a statement that the targets included ballistic missile sites, including “11 mountain-based ballistic missile storages in Saada, command and control centres, communication systems, missile and weapons storages”.
The new operation followed Houthi attacks on Tuesday and Wednesday targeting King Khalid International Airport in Riyadh and Abha International Airport, according to the spokesperson.
Saudi Arabia’s civil aviation authority said the attacks on the two airports killed three people.
One person was killed and eight wounded in an attack on King Khalid International Airport, and two were killed and 28 wounded in an attack on facilities at Abha airport, the General Authority of Civil Aviation said in a statement.
The attacks have drawn condemnation from across the region. Kuwait denounced the attacks as a “flagrant violation” of Saudi sovereignty and international law. The Muslim World League (MWL) also condemned the strikes, describing them as “treacherous terrorist attacks”. Egypt said the attacks threaten the security of the entire region.
