Yemen army makes gains against rebels

Government forces have broken months of stalemate in strategic areas such as Medi, Haradh and Nehim

Dozens of Al Houthi fighters were killed in heavy clashes in the northern province of Hajja as Yemeni government forces advanced deep into the Red Sea city of Medi, the Ministry of Defence said yesterday.

Government forces raided Al Houthi hideouts in some districts of the Red Sea city of Medi, setting off heavy clashes that killed as least 20 Al Houthis.

The ministry’s official website quoted a local army commander as saying that elite forces stormed a number of houses in Medi and drove the rebels out of the Kadaf and Umm Al Grager regions.

For more than two weeks, government forces have laid siege to the city in an effort to force the rebels to surrender.

The city is almost entirely empty as civilians fled to safer areas amid the months of fierce fighting.

With massive air and logistical support from the Saudi-led Arab coalition, government forces recently managed to halt Al Houthi gains on all fronts.

Government forces have broken months of military stalemate placing Al Houthi militants on the defensive in areas like Medi, Haradh and the Nehim district of Sana’a.

The Ministry of Defence also mourned the death of Colonel Abdullah Al Reshidi and a number of his associates who were killed in clashes with Al Houthis in the district of Serwah, Marib province.

Meanwhile in the southern city of Taiz, two brothers were killed and several others from the same family wounded on Friday when they were hit by a Katyusha rocket fired by Al Houthi fighters.

Residents said that Al Houthis who are stationed outside the Salo region heavily shelled residential areas, causing panic and damage to properties. Clashes also continued yesterday on the eastern, southern and northern outskirts of Taiz. just outside