Houthi fighters clash with Yemeni government forces in country’s southwest

Houthis attempt to cut road linking Taiz to al-Makha in apparent bid to sever government’s strategic supply route.

Yemeni government soldiers ride on the back of a pick-up truck in the Arabian Sea port city of Mukalla [File: Reuters]

Yemeni government forces are engaged in fierce clashes with Houthi fighters across several fronts west of Taiz province, as the Iran-backed group launches a broad offensive along front lines on the western Red Sea coast.

In the latest sign that a return to full-scale war in Yemen may be approaching, Houthi fighters on Thursday attempted to advance to reach and cut the road linking Taiz to al-Makha (Mocha), aiming to sever Taiz city from the coast.

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Al Jazeera’s Yousef Mawry, reporting from the Yemeni capital Sanaa, said taking control of the port city of al-Makha would cut off government forces from a strategic supply route and give Houthis a foothold in the Red Sea, a key maritime route for oil exports and other global trade.

“In order to do that, they must drive out Yemeni government forces,” Mawry said. “But we have reports from Yemeni government officials that they have regained control of some of the areas that fell under Houthi control.”

Yemen’s Army Media Centre said Houthis had fired 14 ballistic missiles and launched drones at populated districts in the provinces of Taiz and Hodeidah.

It said the Houthis launched an attack on army positions in the Maqbanah Mountains, west of Taiz province, and attempted to infiltrate areas of al-Ahtoub, al-Tuwair, al-Kadha and Jabal Ghabari.

The media centre said more than 18 Houthi fighters were killed and others wounded or captured as they clashed with Yemeni forces in the southwestern part of the country on Thursday.

An unnamed military source, meanwhile, told the AFP news agency that 13 government forces were killed in the fighting. Another military source said most of those killed were on the front lines between al-Makha and Taiz, while the others died in clashes near the Red Sea coast.

A field officer in al-Makha told AFP his men were “fighting fiercely to repel the massive Houthi offensive”.

“We also thwarted an attack with two booby-trapped boats that exploded near the port,” he said, requesting anonymity.

‘Fierce advancement’

The Yemen News Agency, Saba, reported that the army shot down three Houthi drones in the Jabal Habashi district in Taiz governorate and was engaged in fierce clashes with Houthi fighters on the al-Barah front, west of Taiz city.

Over the past weeks, fighting has intensified in Yemen, with exchanges of fire and drone attacks reported across nearly the entire frozen front line.

Yemen has been mired in conflict since the Houthis seized the capital Sanaa in 2014, prompting a Saudi-led military intervention the following year that spiralled into a years-long war.

The Houthis and the internationally recognised government struck a truce in 2022 that has, until now, largely held. Progress towards a lasting agreement to end the war stalled in 2023, when Israel launched its war on Gaza and tensions in the wider region escalated.

Al Jazeera’s Mawry said the fact that Houthi fighters were able to enter government territory and seize it for several hours was a sign that attempts at resuming talks and establishing a ceasefire were failing.

“Both sides are now scrabbling to gain territory and gain control not just on land, but at sea,” the correspondent said. In recent weeks, Houthis have launched attacks on government-affiliated Saudi oil tankers .

“We’ll have to wait and see whether government forces can maintain control”, Mawry added, noting that the army must work to thwart the Houthis’ “fierce advancement”.

胡塞武装试图切断连接塔伊兹和麦加的公路，显然是为了切断政府的战略补给线。

也门政府军士兵乘坐皮卡车行驶在阿拉伯海港口城市穆卡拉。[图片来源：路透社]

也门政府军与胡塞武装在塔伊兹省以西的多个战线展开激烈交战，与此同时，伊朗支持的胡塞武装在红海西岸沿线发动了大规模攻势。

也门全面战争可能即将卷土重来的最新迹象是，胡塞武装周四试图推进并切断连接塔伊兹和摩卡（马哈）的道路，目的是切断塔伊兹市与海岸的联系。

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以色列多场战争导致财政部和国防部在支出问题上发生冲突（列表 3/3）。

半岛电视台记者优素福·马乌里从也门首都萨那报道称，控制港口城市麦加将切断政府军的战略补给线，并使胡塞武装在红海站稳脚跟。红海是石油出口和其他全球贸易的重要海上通道。

“为了做到这一点，他们必须驱逐也门政府军，”莫里说。“但我们从也门政府官员那里得到的消息是，他们已经重新控制了一些之前被胡塞武装控制的地区。”

也门陆军媒体中心称，胡塞武装向塔伊兹省和荷台达省的人口稠密地区发射了14枚弹道导弹和无人机。

声明称，胡塞武装向塔伊兹省西部的马格巴纳山脉的军队阵地发动袭击，并试图渗透到阿赫图布、图瓦伊尔、卡达和贾巴尔加巴里地区。

媒体中心称，周四，胡塞武装分子与也门军队在该国西南部发生冲突，造成18名胡塞武装分子死亡，另有多人受伤或被俘。

与此同时，一位不愿透露姓名的军方消息人士告诉法新社，有13名政府军士兵在战斗中丧生。另一位军方消息人士称，大多数死者是在麦加和塔伊兹之间的前线阵地丧生的，其余死者则是在红海沿岸附近的冲突中丧生的。

驻扎在马哈的一名前线军官告诉法新社，他的部下正在“奋力抵抗胡塞武装的大规模进攻”。

“我们还挫败了一起袭击，两艘装有诡雷的船只在港口附近爆炸，”他说道，并要求匿名。

“奋力前进”

也门萨巴通讯社报道称，也门军队在塔伊兹省贾巴尔哈巴什地区击落了三架胡塞武装无人机，并在塔伊兹市以西的巴拉赫前线与胡塞武装发生激烈冲突。

过去几周，也门的战斗愈演愈烈，几乎整个冰封的前线都出现了交火和无人机袭击的报道。

自 2014 年胡塞武装占领首都萨那以来，也门一直深陷冲突之中，次年沙特阿拉伯领导的军事干预演变为一场持续数年的战争。

胡塞武装与国际社会承认的加沙政府于2022年达成停火协议，该协议迄今为止基本维持有效。然而，2023年以色列对加沙发动战争，导致整个地区的紧张局势升级，达成持久协议以结束战争的进程陷入停滞。

半岛电视台记者马乌里表示，胡塞武装能够进入政府控制区并占领数小时，这表明恢复谈判和建立停火的努力正在失败。

“双方现在都在争夺领土和控制权，不仅在陆地上，也在海上，”这位记者说。最近几周，胡塞武装对与沙特政府有关联的油轮发动了袭击。

“我们得拭目以待，看看政府军能否维持控制，”莫里补充道，并指出军队必须努力阻止胡塞武装的“猛烈推进”。