At least 70 Saudi-backed militants have been killed in an attack by the Yemeni army, backed by popular committees, on their hideouts in the southern province of Abyan, local media reports say.
According to Yemen's al-Masirah television network, fighters of the Houthi Ansarullah movement and allied Yemeni army units managed to kill several militants fighting for Yemen's fugitive former president, Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi, in the city of Zinjibar, the capital of Abyan, on Saturday.
The militants, backed by Saudi air cover, were repelled and forced to retreat from the troubled region in the face of strong resistance by the Yemeni forces. Saudi warplanes reportedly conducted nearly 200 airstrikes to target military as well as civilian targets across the troubled region during the fierce fighting.
UAE soldiers killed
Meanwhile, a landmine explosion resulted in the death of at least three Emirati soldiers who were fighting along the pro-Saudi militants. The explosion took place on a highway between Abyan and Aden in southern Yemen.
The United Arab Emirates' Defense Ministry has confirmed that at least 20 Emirati soldiers have so far been killed across Abyan over the past few weeks.
Since March 26, Saudi Arabia has been pounding various areas in Yemen - without a UN mandate. The military aggression is meant to undermine the Houthi fighters and restore Hadi, a staunch ally of the Riyadh regime, back to power.
According to al-Masirah, Saudi forces on Saturday fired artillery shells on the Kataf district in the northern Yemeni province of Sa’ada and the city of Harad in the northwestern province of Hajjah. The Kataf region was also targeted by airstrikes.
UN Under-Secretary-General for Humanitarian Affairs Stephen O’Brien said in late July that thousands of civilians have lost their lives in the Saudi airstrikes.
“We continue to witness the death and injury of civilians and the destruction of civilian infrastructure. As of 24 July, health facilities report over 4,000 conflict-related deaths and over 19,800 injuries since 26 March. The Office of the UN High Commissioner for Human Rights (OHCHR) reports that 1,895 civilians have been killed, and 4,182 injured.”
http://www.presstv.com/Detail/2015/08/08/423848/Yemen-Saudi-Arabia-Houthis
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