Yemen’s al-Waziiya offensive advances amid rival battlefield claims
Government-aligned forces say they launched an operation in the strategic Taiz district as part of a wider campaign to regain territory on the Red Sea coast. The Houthis say they repelled the advance.
Yemeni government-aligned forces said they began an operation on Tuesday to retake al-Waziiya, a mountainous district in Taiz. The army’s media centre said Homeland Shield Forces had secured strategic hills near al-Mansoura. The Houthis disputed that account, saying they repelled the advance.
The competing claims have not been independently verified in the source material. The fighting is part of the “Dawn of Yemen” offensive, announced on Sunday by Presidential Leadership Council chairman Rashad al-Alimi to retake Houthi-held territory, including Sanaa.
Al-Waziiya lies west of Taiz and east of Mocha. The Houthis reportedly seized Mocha and areas around the Bab al-Mandeb Strait last month. Al Jazeera’s report describes control of the district’s mountains as important to a possible government advance on the port.
The Saudi-led coalition said it intercepted a Houthi ballistic missile aimed at Khamis Mushait and said its aircraft were providing support to the government offensive. Saudi authorities also reported attacks on Jazan and Najran airports that injured three people. The Houthis said they had targeted sites across southern Saudi Arabia; the available account provides limited detail on the attacks.
