Yemeni forces regain resorts in Hodeidah push
Yemeni forces, backed by the Arab coalition, have taken control over tourist resorts in Al Nukhaila, in Al Duraihimi province, just west of the rebel-held port city of Hodeidah.
“They are only 10 kilometres away from Al Hodeidah airport,” said Aseel Al Sakladi, media officer of the Amalikah brigades.
He said Yemeni troops seized ballistic missiles and vehicles belonging to the Iran-backed Houthi militia, from a farm located between Al Tuhayta and Bayt Al Faqih, south of Al Hodeidah.
“At least 73 Houthis were killed and 23 were arrested amid fierce clashes on Sunday morning in the Al Mashraee and Al Madman areas and in the north of Al Hays districts,” Mr Al Sakladi told The National.
The Saudi-led Arab coalition – which includes the UAE – launched air strikes at Houthi troops dispatched as reinforcements to Al Mashraee, he said.
Meanwhile, UN special envoy to Yemen, Martin Griffiths arrived on Saturday in Sanaa, which is under Houthi control.
He is visiting the capital as part of diplomatic efforts to end more than three years of conflict between the internationally recognised government of Yemeni President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi and the Houthi militias.
Mr Griffiths will discuss with the rebels a plan to withdraw from Hodeidah and hand over control of the harbour and airport to the UN, according to Al Arabiya TV channel.
Hodeidah is Yemen’s largest entry point for aid, on which millions depend as the country teeters on the brink of famine. The fall of the port would cut the Houthi supply line to rebel-held areas of northern Yemen, including Sanaa.
The Arab coalition – which Mr Hadi’s government asked to intervene on its behalf in March 2015 – say Hodeidah is also the entry point for rebel weapons, including ballistic missiles, which it accuses Iran of supplying. The Houthis have fired missiles at Saudi Arabia, which the United States and UN experts say are of Iranian origin – a claim Tehran denies.