Iran-backed rebels launched campaign Thursday to cut off port city of Mokha on way to Bab el-Mandeb strait, sparking deadliest fighting since collapse of 2022 truce in July
DUBAI, United Arab Emirates — Fighting between government forces and Iran-backed Houthis in southwest Yemen has killed more than 300 combatants, as well as some civilians, since the rebels launched an offensive Thursday, according to a tally based on military and medical sources.
Two military officials with the Saudi-backed government forces told AFP that 84 of their troops were killed since midday Saturday, mostly in missile attacks, while four Houthi military sources said 57 rebel fighters were killed in the same period.
Days-long clashes have erupted in Yemen over control of a gateway to the Red Sea in the deadliest fighting in the Arabian Peninsula country since a 2022 ceasefire between the two sides collapsed in July.
Beginning on Thursday, the Houthis launched an offensive aiming to cut off the government-held port city of Mokha, under fire for weeks, and advance towards areas bordering the Bab el-Mandeb chokepoint at the southern entrance to the Red Sea.
