On Tuesday, at least 20 fighters of the Shia Houthi group were killed when they launched an armed attack ona strategic airbase and government-controlled areasin Yemen’s southern province of Lahj, a military official said.
The attacks carried out by scores of Houthi fighters, and their alliesoccurred in the early hours. They aimed at advancingtowards the government troops based inside the country’s biggest air base in Lahj province, Xinhua reported. TheHouthi fighters have managed to capture a mountain overlooking the strategic militaryairbase of Al-Anad, which is located some 60 kilometres away from Yemen’s temporary capital of Aden.
According to Yemen military source, the pro-government army troops responded with heavy shelling which in turn triggered an intense battle and resulted in the death of 20 Houthi fighters.
An army commander informed that the Houthi militants attempted to infiltrate into areas surrounding the military airbase at dawn. Aftercarrying out Saudi-led airstrikes against them, thepro-government army repelled the attacks. When the pro-government troops backed by armoured vehicles of the Saudi-led arrived in the area and engaged in a gunbattle, the situation intensified and ended leaving ten soldiers injured.
Several witnesses narrated how the warplanes of the Saudi-led coalition launched massive air raids and struck several plateaus that were seized by Houthi fighters outside Lahj province. It was an attempt to stop them from advancing towardSouthern Yemen. It’s worth noting that Tuesday’s attack occurred despite the cease-fire that came to force from April 10 onward. It was expected to pave the way for the Kuwait peace talk. But both warring sides have complained that the enemy has violated the cease-part and continued massive airstrikes and shelling.
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Underthe auspices of the United Nations, theUN-brokered negotiations began in Kuwait on April 21 in an attempt to seek a re-conciliating end to a civil war that has been going on for over a year. The talk has been third of its kind since the conflict began after Houthi militias seized the capital Sanaa and expelled the government to exile in September in the year 2014. The two previous peace talks have failed to bring useful results in ending the hostilities. And with regards to this talk, 60 days have already passed, but the rival negotiators have so far failed to agree on agenda in line with the UN Security Council Resolution 2216. This isbecause the resolution would lead theHouthi militias to withdraw from Sanaa and all other cities, and also hand over their weapons. They’d also have to release political prisoners beforeforming new sharing transitional government, the government thatHouthi and Saleh delegates have been insisting on forming.
The civil war has killed over 6,000 people and injured some additional 35,000 others. According tohumanitarian aid agencies, some two million people have been displaced due to the war.
