After bloody air strikes and fierce clashes in Yemen’s sensitive Taiz province, tension and fighting between Yemeni government forces and Iran-backed Houthi rebels have intensified sharply.
Houthi sources claim that about 30 of the group’s fighters and 8 civilians were killed in air strikes in the Taiz area. Houthi spokesperson Yahya Saree accused Saudi Arabia of targeting a market and shops at the “Mawiyah crossroads” on the outskirts of Taiz, saying more than 50 people, including 5 children, were affected by the attack. He announced a strong response to the attack.
Meanwhile, Yemen’s internationally recognised government and the Saudi-led coalition rejected the Houthis’ account, saying their forces targeted a Houthi military camp and military vehicles at the Mawiyah crossroads.
Yemeni armed forces spokesperson Colonel Majid Abdullah al-Nuzaili said that over the past 72 hours the forces carried out 756 effective operations targeting 2,316 Houthi fighters, including four Iranian nationals.
Taiz is a geographically very important and sensitive province lying between government-controlled areas in the north and Houthi-influenced areas in the south. Clashes between the two sides have increased markedly recently, especially since the Houthis’ capture of the important port city of al-Mokha. According to the latest reports, Yemeni government forces are continuing defensive and counter-attacks to halt the Houthi rebels’ new advance.
