Yemen clashes near Hodeida kill 150 in a week: Military sources

HODEIDA: Some 150 Yemeni pro-government soldiers and Ansar Allah fighters have been killed in a week of fighting south of the strategic port city of Hodeida, military sources said on Monday.

Impoverished Yemen is mired in a devastating conflict between Ansar Allah fighters and government forces backed by Saudi Arabia that has left tens of thousands dead and sparked a dire humanitarian crisis.

The latest clashes in the Red Sea port city of Hodeida are the most violent since a truce negotiated in the area by the UN came into force in 2018.

The Ansar Allah fighters, who hold Hodeida, have attacked to the south of the city where progovernment forces maintain positions, pro-government military sources said.

“The toll for losses on the two sides has reached around 150 dead and 260 wounded’’, an official of the pro-government forces said.

The toll was confirmed by a local official on the fighter side.

The clashes had so far not resulted in any territorial gains for Ansar Allah, residents said.

After fierce fighting on Saturday and Sunday, the

THE LATEST CLASHES IN THE RED SEA PORT CITY OF HODEIDA ARE THE MOST VIOLENT SINCE A TRUCE NEGOTIATED IN THE AREA BY THE UN CAME INTO FORCE IN 2018

intensity of clashes cooled early on Monday.

Pro-government forces have suffered 27 fatalities and killed 44 fighters in countering “several assaults” by the fighters, two other pro-government sources said.

Medics and rescue workers said that military fatalities on the two sides had reached a total of 70 between Saturday and Sunday.

Aid group Doctors Without Borders said on Twitter that its team in the Mocha Trauma Hospital was engaging a “mass casualty plan” to respond to an influx of wounded.

— Reuters Ansar Allah supporters hold up their weapons during a demonstration outside the US Embassy against the United States over its decision to designate Ansar Allah a foreign terrorist organisation, in Sanaa on Monday.