Coalition: 100 fighters participated in battles

Riyadh (Agencies): Brigadier General Turki Al-Maliki, the official spokesperson for the forces of the “Coalition for Supporting Legitimacy in Yemen,” confirmed that 100 fighter jets participated in the “Fajr al-Yemen” operation yesterday dawn. In a statement, the spokesperson added that air support for the Yemeni Armed Forces is provided on the ground around the clock, and that 324 high-value targets were destroyed with the launch of the “Fajr al-Yemen” operation, noting that engagement with mobile targets is ongoing. He also stated that the coalition ensures air protection for the Bab al-Mandab Strait.

Earlier yesterday, Major General Majid Al-Nazili, the official spokesperson for the Yemeni Armed Forces, announced the wide-scale launch of the “Fajr al-Yemen” operation targeting Houthi capabilities and elements. Al-Nazili said, “Our armed forces carried out 1,122 precise targeting operations against artillery positions, rocket launchers, defensive fortifications, approach and reinforcement routes, supply lines, combat deployments, governing bodies, and command and control centers” in Saada, Al-Jawf, Taiz, and the coastal areas. He clarified that the strikes were conducted by combat aircraft, drones, artillery, missiles, rocket launchers, and snipers.

He also noted that the “Giants Forces” and “Homeland Shield” successfully took control of Bab al-Mandab, adding that Du’aban Airport is also under the control of government forces. He explained that troops cut the road between Du’aban and Al-Mukha and established firm fire control over it, pointing out that hundreds of Houthis are besieged in the Du’aban area and have been ordered to surrender. He further noted that some Houthi militia elements fled by boat across the sea after being surrounded.

This operation follows an escalation in Houthi attacks on Yemeni forces last month and their advance toward the Red Sea coast and the Bab al-Mandab Strait, a vital passage for shipping and oil tankers. After years of relative calm, clashes in Yemen resumed since July last year following the collapse of a truce agreed upon in 2022 between the Houthis and the legitimate government, amid the widening of the war in the Middle East between Iran and the United States.

Separately, the UK Maritime Trade Operations (UKMTO) reported on Sunday evening that “several explosions” occurred near an oil tanker off the coast of Al-Mukha, Yemen, on the Red Sea coast. It added that “the crew is safe and no reports of environmental damage have been received.” No further details were provided.