Govt forces repel Houthi attack in SW Yemen: Official

By Mohamed al-Samei

SANAA (AA) – Pro-government forces Tuesday repelled an attack in Yemen’s southwestern Taiz province by Shia Houthi militiamen and allied forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh, according to a military official.

Speaking to Anadolu Agency, Colonel Mansur al-Hassani, a spokesman for Yemen’s national army, said the Houthis and pro-Saleh forces had launched a fierce attack on pro-government positions in the strategic Han Mount area of western Taiz.

"The attackers were eventually forced to retreat, however, after initially registering gains," al-Hassani said, adding that a number of Houthi militiamen had been killed in the fighting.

"The attack occurred after the Houthis used the recent 48-hour truce -- which expired on Monday -- to bring reinforcements to the area," al-Hassani said.

Yemen has remained in the throes of war since late 2014, when the Houthis and pro-Salah forces overran capital Sanaa and other parts of the country, forcing President Abd Rabbuh Mansour Hadi and his Saudi-backed government to temporarily flee to Riyadh.

In March of last year, Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies launched a massive air campaign aimed at reversing Houthi military gains in Yemen and restoring Hadi’s embattled government.

Two previous rounds of peace talks failed to resolve the conflict, in which thousands of Yemenis have reportedly been killed and an estimated 2.5 million forced to flee their homes.