Yemen rebels

Haradh and Midi port, but they have met heavy resistance from the rebels and their allies in the adjacent town.

Despite a Saudi-led military intervention, which is now in its second year, the Houthi Shiite rebels still control most of the Red Sea coast, including the key ports of Hodeida and Mokha.

With coalition air and ground support, forces loyal to President Abed Rabbo Mansour Hadi have pushed the rebels out of most of the south and made some headway in the east and northeast.

But with the support of renegade troops loyal to Hadi’s ousted predecessor Ali Abdullah Saleh, the rebels have retained control of the capital Sanaa and most of the highlands of the north and centre.

The latest fighting comes as the warring parties prepare for a UN-brokered ceasefire on April 10 intended to pave the way for peace talks in Kuwait on April 18.

The planned truce was only agreed by the two sides after months of shuttle diplomacy by UN envoy Ismail Ould Cheikh Ahmed.

Previous UN-sponsored negotiations between the rebels and the government failed to make any headway, and a ceasefire announced for Dec 15 was repeatedly violated and abandoned by the coalition on Jan 2.

There has been mounting international pressure for an end to the conflict as the civilian death toll has mounted and the humanitarian situation deteriorated.

The seizure of several key southern cities by al-Qaeda and the growing presence in the south of rival jihadists of the Islamic State group has also triggered international alarm.

The Sunni extremists of al-Qaeda have exploited the focus of loyalist and coalition firepower on the Shiite rebels to expand their control across the south, even in parts of Aden, where the government has its base.

The Yemeni Foreign Minister Abdul-Malik al-Mikhlafi said Wednesday that his government will abide by the cease-fire with Houthi rebels scheduled to start on April 10.

During his meeting in Riyadh with US Ambassador to Yemen Matthew H. Tueller, the minister said: “The Yemeni government, out of its keenness to achieve peace in Yemen, will commit to the cease-fire.” He stressed the need that the coup parties must also abide by the cease-fire, according to the Saudi SPA. He was referring to the Houthi group and supporters of the ousted president Ali Abdullah Salah.

The minister also stressed the keenness of the Yemeni government on the success of the consultations to be held in Kuwait on April 18.

SANAA, March 31, (Agencies): Yemeni rebels have mounted a deadly counter attack against government troops advancing down the Red Sea coast from the Saudi border ahead of a planned ceasefire next month, military sources said on Thursday.

The rebels and their allies surrounded a government force that was attempting to recapture the coastal town of Midi and killed 45 loyalist troops on Tuesday and Wednesday, the sources said.

At least 15 rebels were also killed in the fighting.

Forces loyal to the internationally recognised government based in the south crossed the border from Saudi Arabia in mid-December in a bid to open up a new front in the north as offensives faltered in the centre and east.

They swiftly captured the inland town of