Yemen Fighting Toll Climbs Amid Fresh Houthi Strikes
The death toll from a Houthi assault on Yemeni government forces has climbed, with reports putting the number of troops killed as high as fifty-eight, in some of the deadliest fighting in the country in years. Fresh Houthi drone strikes on Friday killed several more soldiers near Marib. The tolls, drawn from the warring sides, could not be independently verified.
The surge in fighting marks a dangerous escalation in Yemen’s long civil war, reawakened as the Iran-aligned Houthis flex their power during the wider confrontation with the United States and Israel. The group, which controls much of the country and has attacked Red Sea shipping, is testing the fragile lines that had largely held. Estimates of the dead varied widely between the combatants, from around thirty to nearly sixty. A separate strike was reported to have wounded civilians in Saudi Arabia. Watch whether the fighting draws in outside powers or spreads.