75 Al Houthis killed in Hodeida attacks
Minister blames militia for wreaking havoc on Yemen’s education system
Atotal of 75 Iran-allied Al Houthi militiamen were killed during a series of air strikes by the Arab alliance, as well as fighting with government forces in the port city of Hodeida, military sources said yesterday.
An “elaborate” coalition air raid targeted a meeting of Al Houthi commanders in the Red Sea city and killed at least 15 of them and injured others, sources in the progovernment forces, the Giants Battalions said.
Coalition jets, meanwhile, targeted the militants’ positions and reinforcements in the district of Al Durayhimi south of Hodeida, leaving more than 30 Al Houthis dead, they said.
Fierce clashes also raged between the Giants Brigades and Al Houthi militias on the outskirts of Al Durayhimi, killing 30 more extremists.
In recent weeks, government forces, supported by the coalition’s air power, have intensified their bombardment of Al Houthi rebels in and around Hodeida, which has been under the militants’ control since October 2014.
The coalition accuses Al Houthis of taking advantage of their control of the port to obtain weapons from their Iranian patrons as well as confiscate aid intended for Yemenis in order to sustain their war efforts.
1m not going to school
Education Minister Abdullah Lamlas said yesterday more than one million Yemeni children have not been able to attend school because of the war.
“The war waged by Al Houthi militia has resulted in destructive effects on the educational system in Yemen,” he told a gathering in Tunisia, according to the news portal Adan Al Ghad.