Clashes continued between Yemeni army and militants in Mareb

The clashes continued between Yemen’s governmental troops loyal to the legitimate government on one hand and Houthi militias and forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh on the other hand, as the Arab Coalition’s fighter jets carried out four raids against the sites of militants kilometers away from the international airport. The raids targeted sites the strongholds of militias in Naham.

Two airstrikes hit the sites of insurgents in Mareb. Military sources revealed that the airstrikes led to the killing of a number of militants among the insurgents. The battles continued in a number of cities, including Jouf Governorate near the borders with Saudi Arabia. According to the Yemeni army, the clashes erupted in towns of Khob, Shaaf, Masloob and Matoon.

In Sada, the clashes continued between the governmental troops and Houthi militias in the fronts of Boqa and Baqem in addition to other targets on the borders between Yemen and Saudi Arabia. The Yemeni army also managed to undermine over five thousand land mines planted by the Houthi militants in different areas in the fronts of Herd and Medi.

The Yemeni army said the toll from Friday’s rebel rocket attack on its camp in Marib province, east of the capital Sanaa, had risen to 32 dead and 81 wounded. Marib province is on the border with Saudi Arabia and most of it has been retaken by government forces.

Meanwhile in the south-western province of Taez, two senior Yemen rebels survived a Saudi-led coalition air raid on their convoy on Saturday that killed eight of their guards. The attack targeted a convoy carrying Abdu Al Jundi, who was appointed as the governor of Taez by the Houthi rebels, and Abu Ali Al Hakem, military commander of the same region. The eight guards were killed when two vehicles in the convoy were hit in the raid near the town of Burj.

Jundi and Hakem were able to escape and seek shelter in a nearby market, a rebel military source said.

In the western province of Hodeida, Saudi-led coalition aircraft carried out a series of strikes on a rebel training camp on Saturday, leaving "dozens of dead and wounded", according to a military official. The camp, 70 kilometres east of Hodeidah city, is home to young recruits enlisted by the Houthis. Two weeks ago the rebels forced each district of Hodeida to send 30 young people there for conscription.

In Riyadh, Spokesperson of Arab Coalition Ahmed Essiry said that the relief programs related to the United Nations obtained $1.7 billion from the countries of the Arab Coalition to support the Yemeni people. He called the international organizations for revealing the destiny of this money.

He signaled that the Arab Coalition has not demanded the United Nations to protect the strategic port, while to supervise the humanitarian aids. He warned that the Houthi militias use the port to threaten the international navigation in the Red Sea and to smuggle the weapons. 

He accused the H outhis of targeting a boat for refugees on Thursday, saying that they killed 42 African refugees. He added that the incident proved the insurgents’ involvement in human trafficking.