The internationally recognised government in Yemen says that its forces have conducted more than 100 military operations against the Houthi armed group, also known as Ansar Allah, in the past 24 hours as fighting spreads in the country. At least 133 operations were conducted against “the capabilities and elements of the terrorist Houthi militia”, with the participation of army units stationed along front-line positions, Yemen army spokesperson Colonel Majed al-Nuzaili posted on X on Tuesday. The latest offensive by the Saudi-backed government came after Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Saree claimed an attack on “a Saudi-led coalition landing ship and four accompanying warships” near the Yemeni port city of al-Makha (Mocha), located in Taiz province.
In recent weeks, fighting has erupted across multiple fronts, with clashes reported in several provinces – including Marib, al-Jawf, Hadramout, Hodeidah, Taiz, al-Dhale and Lahj. The Iran-aligned Houthis, who control vast swaths of northern Yemen including the capital Sanaa, have also launched strikes beyond the country’s borders, targeting Saudi Arabia and Red Sea shipping. An informal, years-long period of calm that began with a temporary United Nations-brokered truce in 2022 has come to an end, as the Arab region’s most impoverished nation teeters on the edge of yet another bout of civil war.
The eruption of fighting is linked to local as well as regional developments. In late June, as regional tensions rose due to the United States-Iran war, both Yemen’s internationally recognised government and its opponent, the Houthi armed group, began mobilising some of their fighters. Then in July, a strike claimed by the Yemeni government on Sanaa airport – in an effort to stop a plane from Iran landing – led the Houthis to declare a naval blockade of the kingdom and initiate a general mobilisation.
This was followed by an escalation in attacks on Red Sea shipping and strikes on Saudi Arabia’s oil facilities. The government forces launched a preemptive operation on August 6 against what they called Houthi weapons-smuggling routes. The heaviest Houthi bombardment in years followed, with a chain of escalations afterwards.
Ali al-Dhahab, an expert in military and strategic affairs, told Al Jazeera that the Houthis are backed by Iran and by allied groups including Hezbollah, Iraqi Popular Mobilisation Forces factions and the Islamic Revolutionary Guard Corps. Their support ranges from weapons and training to intelligence, he said. Facing off against them is Yemen’s internationally-recognised government, comprising an alliance of armed factions opposed to Houthi control and backed by a Saudi-led coalition of Arab states.
Al-Dhahab said the factions have moved closer to integration under Yemen’s Ministry of Defence. They include the Joint Forces on the western coast, Nation’s Shield Forces, Emergency Forces and the Southern Giants Brigade. Fighting has occurred on a number of fronts simultaneously.
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