Yemen government forces launch multi-front attacks against Houthis

Yemen government forces launched attacks against Houthi positions across several front lines on Saturday, after days of fighting that have killed dozens and spilled across the border into Saudi Arabia.

Armed forces spokesman Colonel Majid al-Nuzaili said the operation targeted Houthi positions and military capabilities along several axes in response to attacks on government forces and civilians in Marib and Hadramawt.

Al-Nuzaili said the operation demonstrated the "unity of command and control" of government forces, warning that an attack on any single front would be considered an attack on all government-held fronts.

The military would respond to further Houthi attacks with "necessary and decisive military measures", he added.

The government did not specify which Houthi positions were targeted or provide details of casualties, and the Houthis did not immediately comment.

The operation follows retaliatory strikes by the government-aligned Shabwa Defence Forces in southern Marib on Friday after a Houthi drone attack killed two of its members.

The force said it targeted Houthi command-and-control centres on the Harib front, claiming casualties and equipment losses without giving figures.

The escalation follows major Houthi missile and drone attacks on government military positions in Marib and Hadramawt on Thursday, with 58 people killed.

Houthi fire also struck Saudi Arabia's southern Najran region on Thursday, injuring 11 civilians, including a four-year-old child, in a resumption of direct attacks on the kingdom.

Further Houthi missile and drone attacks targeted Marib on Friday, while fighting has also intensified on fronts in Taiz and Hodeidah.

The exchanges represent one of the most serious breakdowns in the relative calm that followed a UN-brokered truce in 2022, which sharply reduced fighting despite formally expiring later that year.

Nadwa Al-Dawsari, an associate fellow at the Middle East Institute, told The New Arab that government forces and Riyadh appeared increasingly prepared for renewed hostilities.

"The Yemeni government and Saudi Arabia seem to be preparing more carefully this time and trying to avoid past mistakes," she said.

"Government forces are receiving more military support and improving their readiness, while Saudi Arabia is working to secure broader US and regional backing."

Al-Dawsari said a significant reopening of Yemen's front lines now appeared increasingly likely, with Saudi Arabia possibly backing a new government ground offensive.