Yemen Army Seizes Strategic Ground From Houthis in Taiz
Yemen's National Army launched a joint operation on the Kadha front west of Taiz, seizing hills and villages from Iran-backed Houthi militia forces.
ERBIL (Kurdistan24) - Yemen's National Army wrested a string of strategic positions from Iran-backed Houthi fighters west of Taiz on Wednesday, launching a joint military operation on the Kadha front that pushed government forces onto high ground overlooking the surrounding countryside.
Forces from the Taiz military axis and the National Defense Forces began the coordinated offensive to liberate the Kadha area of Maqbana district, southwest of the country, from the grip of the Houthi militia.
Abdulaziz Majidi, chief of staff of the Taiz military axis, announced the launch of the operation, saying government forces had freed several new positions, including Mihal, Makazma hill, and the hills of Hamra, Sawda and Shiek along the Kadha front.
Majidi said the joint forces had achieved battlefield gains, retaking Makazma, Mihal and several nearby hills, even as clashes with Houthi fighters continued fiercely in the area.
The advance came as fierce fighting erupted Tuesday between Yemeni army forces and Houthi fighters in villages west of Taiz, with fighter jets carrying out airstrikes in support of government troops. Field and military sources said the Houthis had launched a broad assault on positions held by National Defense Forces northeast of Wazi'ah district, west of Taiz, triggering intense clashes that were still underway.
Sources said fighting had intensified in the Ghayl and Hanaya areas, prompting Yemen's army to dispatch reinforcements from the Fourth Region forces and the Giants Brigades to the frontlines in Wazi'ah. Fighter jets carried out a series of strikes on Houthi gatherings in the district.
Media outlets close to the National Defense Forces reported that Abu Ala Ayani, commander of the Rapid Response Force in Barh, was detained along with a number of members of his group following fierce clashes on the Wazi'ah front.
Fronts in the villages west of Taiz have now seen six consecutive days of heavy fighting, while clashes also continued on the Saqam front east of Hays, south of Hodeidah.
Yemen's air force kept up its bombardment of Houthi military positions west of Taiz in recent hours, striking militia positions on the Hamir front in Maqbana district. Air forces also struck Houthi positions, gatherings and vehicles in Wazi'ah district, while a separate strike targeted a Houthi gathering and command center at Rahba school in Jabal Habashi.
With fighting entering its sixth consecutive day across the western Taiz countryside, the outcome of the Kadha offensive is likely to shape the broader battle for control of the province's western approaches in the days ahead.