Fighting between Iran-backed Houthi terrorists and Yemeni government forces killed dozens of combatants and civilians Saturday as the Houthis pressed an offensive in western Taiz and southern Hodeidah along the Red Sea coast.
Twenty-six government troops and 31 Houthi fighters were killed during several hours of combat in southwestern Yemen, medical and military sources told Agence France-Presse.
Six civilians were also killed, and seven others were wounded when a missile struck a bus in the city of Taiz.
The casualties came after the Houthis launched an offensive targeting areas in western Taiz and southern Hodeidah.
Government forces said Friday that they had regained control of the al-Khazan and al-Makahna hills west of Taiz. Both positions are considered strategically important for control of the surrounding region.
A government military officer said the “coming hours will be decisive” after Houthi forces took up positions near Taiz a day earlier.
Reinforcements were arriving from Aden in an effort to halt the Houthi advance, the officer said.
A ceasefire that had been in place since 2022 collapsed in July when an Iranian plane attempted to land in Houthi-controlled Sana’a, prompting Yemeni government attacks on the airport.
The Houthis had previously controlled the port city of al-Makha, which overlooks Bab el Mandeb, before government forces backed by the Saudi-led coalition pushed them out.
