Fighting intensifies across Yemen as humanitarian crisis deepens

Fighting intensifies across Yemen as humanitarian crisis deepens

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Fighting between government forces and Houthi fighters has intensified across multiple fronts in Yemen amid a spiralling humanitarian crisis, according to Al Jazeera English. Clashes between Yemeni forces and Houthis have caused casualties on both sides, with aid agencies warning of a deepening human crisis. The government-affiliated Tur al-Bahah military axis reported that eight soldiers loyal to the internationally recognised Yemeni government were killed during heavy clashes on the al-Maqatirah front in Lahij governorate. In Taiz governorate, government troops said they killed 12 Houthi fighters in al-Aqroud, following days of fighting on the outskirts of Taiz city. Government forces also reported repelling Houthi advances and inflicting heavy losses on the group in Taiz.

Government forces and allied Popular Resistance fighters pressed ahead with their offensive in al-Jawf and Marib, using artillery barrages and drone strikes against Houthi military positions, barracks and troop assemblies in al-Jawf. Coalition aircraft bombed Houthi command hubs and supply depots, while government artillery and missile units targeted Houthi lines in Marib. The Houthis, an armed group also known as Ansar Allah, have seized strategic territory from forces loyal to the country’s internationally recognised government along the Red Sea coast in recent months. Government forces, backed by Saudi Arabia, responded to the losses with a counteroffensive and launched the “Dawn of Yemen” operation, which aims to recapture Houthi-held territory, including the capital, Sanaa, seized by the Iran-aligned group in 2014.

The Houthis also claimed they shot down a Saudi Apache helicopter in the kingdom’s border province of Najran, while Saudi-led coalition spokesman Colonel Turki al-Maliki said an AH-6i reconnaissance helicopter had crashed in Najran due to a technical malfunction, killing two crew members. Houthi media also reported 10 Saudi air strikes targeting sites in Saada governorate. The Houthi military spokesperson, Yahya Saree, claimed that the group’s air defence forces brought down a Saudi reconnaissance drone over the governorate of Hajjah, identifying the aircraft as a Turkish-manufactured Lentatek Karayel drone. This is the fourth of its kind downed since the latest escalation began, according to Saree.

The humanitarian crisis in Yemen has been exacerbated by the ongoing conflict, with aid agencies warning of a deepening human crisis. The fighting has caused widespread displacement and has led to a significant increase in civilian casualties. The international community has called for a ceasefire and a peaceful resolution to the conflict, but so far, there has been little progress towards a resolution.