Yemeni army claims 1,250 Houthis ‘neutralized’ in ‘Dawn of Yemen’ operation

Yemeni government forces said Wednesday that 1,250 Houthi fighters had been “neutralized” during the “Dawn of Yemen” military operation on several fronts.

Yemeni Armed Forces spokesman Majed Abdullah al-Nazili said in a statement that government forces conducted 2,309 “precise and direct” strikes using warplanes, drones, field artillery, rocket launchers and sniper units.

He claimed the operations disrupted Houthi defensive lines, command-and-control centers, frontline positions and supply routes, allowing government forces to advance.

The spokesman said more than 460 military vehicles and other pieces of equipment had also been destroyed or damaged.

In the southwestern province of Taiz, government forces continued airstrikes and ambush operations targeting Houthi forces and reinforcements, according to the statement.

Al-Nazili urged residents in Houthi-controlled areas to keep their children away from recruitment campaigns and military positions, and reiterated an amnesty by Presidential Leadership Council Chairman Rashad al-Alimi to fighters who lay down their weapons.

He also accused the Houthis of targeting civilian infrastructure and residential neighborhoods in Taiz.

The Yemeni army also said it captured five Houthi commanders west of Taiz province, including senior commander Akram Amer, who holds the rank of major general.

Separately, the Yemeni government launched the “Dawn of Yemen” operation earlier this month to retake Houthi-held areas, including the national capital, Sanaa. Government-aligned forces have since announced advances on several fronts, including around the strategic Bab al-Mandab Strait.

The operation has been backed by a Saudi-led coalition, which has intensified air operations against Houthi positions. The coalition said earlier this month that 100 fighter jets took part in one phase of the offensive and later announced that 136 military targets had been destroyed.

The escalation follows renewed fighting between Saudi Arabia and the Houthis, including cross-border missile and drone attacks and intensified coalition airstrikes in Houthi-controlled parts of Yemen.

Yemen has been engulfed in conflict since the Houthis seized Sanaa in 2014, forcing the internationally recognized government from the capital. A Saudi-led coalition intervened militarily in support of the government in 2015.