The head of Yemen’s Presidential Leadership Council on Sunday announced the start of military operations to retake territory held by the Iran-backed Houthis.
“In the name of God and in the name of the people ... we announce today the commencement of military operations to reclaim the remaining territories of the republic and to extend the authority of the state and its institutions across the entire national territory,” Rashad Al Alimi said.
Earlier on Sunday, Yemeni government forces said they launched strikes on Houthi targets in Sanaa and Saada, the rebels' northern stronghold, hours after the militia claimed an attack on an Aramco oil site near Riyadh.
The Houthis said on Sunday that they had carried out two military operations, using ballistic missiles and drones to attack Aramco oil facilities in Saudi Arabia, one in Riyadh and another in the Khurais area. There was no confirmation from the Saudi authorities on Sunday's claimed attacks.
Houthi military spokesman Yahya Saree said Saudi Arabia had launched 50 air strikes and missile attacks against Yemen over the past 12 hours, against Sanaa and the provinces of Al Jawf, Taiz, Amran, Hajjah and Saada.
Mr Saree vowed that the Houthis would continue to attack Saudi military bases, oil facilities and troop concentrations with missiles and drones until attacks on Yemen stop.
Yemeni armed forces spokesman Col Majed Al Nuzaili said government forces had delivered “painful strikes” against “vital targets” belonging to the Houthis in Sanaa and Saada.
“The militia’s capabilities will not be safe from the fire of our armed forces, and we will destroy them,” Col Al Nuzaili said in remarks aired on Saudi state television.
Flames engulfed part of the Aramco site south of the Saudi capital on Saturday, with thick black smoke billowing over a nearby motorway in images published by international news agencies. Firefighters moved in to tackle the blaze, while ambulances and police vehicles were reportedly seen nearby.
The Houthis claimed responsibility, saying they had attacked the site with ballistic missiles and drones in retaliation for Saudi strikes on Houthi-held territory in Yemen.
Mr Saree said in an earlier statement that the operation had “successfully achieved its objective” and that the attacks had caused “fires at the targeted sites”.
But the Saudi-led coalition fighting the Houthis dismissed their claim as “misleading”. “What the Houthis are facing in Taiz, and the human losses suffered by the group's members at the hands of the heroes of the Yemeni Armed Forces and the Popular Resistance on all fronts drives them to seek illusory victories,” coalition spokesman Maj Gen Turki Al Malki told Asharq Al Awsat.
Saudi authorities did not immediately confirm that the site had been attacked, while Aramco did not comment on the cause of the fire. Saudi Arabia leads a coalition that intervened in Yemen after the Houthi takeover of the capital Sanaa in 2014.
The Houthis also said Saudi forces had carried out about 60 air strikes against their territory over the previous 24 hours, including attacks on the rebel-held capital, Sanaa.
The latest exchanges come as fighting intensifies around Taiz, where government forces are seeking to prevent the Houthis from tightening their grip on the strategically important city and surrounding supply routes.
Col Al Nuzaili said government forces had carried out 97 “precision targeting operations” on fronts in Taiz and Lahij, using aircraft, drones, artillery, missiles and snipers.
The operations had “neutralised” 260 militia members and destroyed or damaged military, transport and supply vehicles, he said in his televised remarks early on Sunday morning.
The spokesman had earlier said the military had conducted 257 attacks across several fronts, killing at least 700 Houthi fighters. The claims could not be independently verified.
The escalation comes as Saudi Arabia considers a broader offensive against the Iran-backed Houthis, with Reuters reporting that Riyadh is weighing operations on several fronts to push back the group and secure the Red Sea shipping route.
Taiz is divided into areas controlled by the Houthis and those controlled by the government. Civilians have been forced to flee their homes, often several times.
Aid advocates fear that any major population movement would overwhelm humanitarian response efforts.
Hunger is also worsening rapidly in the governorate. As well as displacing thousands of families, the renewed fighting has also driven up food prices and cut off access for aid, the World Food Programme said on Friday.
Recent WFP monitoring found that 74 per cent of households in accessible areas could not meet their basic food needs, the highest level recorded this year, as the conflict intensifies and economic conditions deteriorate.
