Attack by Yemen’s Houthis kills 14 government troops: official

Yemenis fire a heavy machinegun during a rally in solidarity with Lebanon and Iran on the outskirts of the Huthi-controlled capital Sanaa on July 2, 2026. Hamas's unprecedented October 7, 2023 attack on Israel triggered a devastating Israeli military campaign in Gaza, drawing in Hezbollah in Lebanon, Yemen's Houthi rebels and, eventually, Iran itself. (Photo by Mohammed HUWAIS / AFP)

• The Houthis have been at war with the government since 2015 in a conflict that has killed hundreds of thousands of people

ADEN: Yemen’s Iran-backed Houthi rebels killed 14 troops in an attack south of the port city of Hodeidah, a military official aligned with the country’s internationally-recognized government told AFP on Sunday.
The official said pro-government forces had repelled the attack in Hays district, south of Hodeidah, in “clashes lasting for several hours at dawn on Saturday.”
He added “fighting resulted in dead and wounded among (Houthi) ranks,” without specifying the number killed in the opposing force.
The Houthis have been at war with the government since 2015 in a conflict that has killed hundreds of thousands of people and triggered a major humanitarian crisis in Yemen.
The rebels control Yemen’s capital Sanaa and much of the north, including Hodeidah on Yemen’s western Red Sea coast, while the internationally-recognized government holds much of the south.
The fighting between the two sides has largely been frozen since a UN-negotiated truce in 2022.
But on Friday the Houthis threatened airports and vital assets belonging to Saudi Arabia, a key backer of Yemen’s Aden-based government.
The rebel group, part of Iran’s “axis of resistance” against Israel and the United States, accused the kingdom of trying to stop an Iranian plane from landing.