...an area of the Arabian Peninsula sometimes mistaken for a country. It is populated by more antagonistic tribes and factions than you can keep track of...
's internationally recognized government have reclaimed large swaths of territory in a southern province from Iran-backed Iran's Houthi sock puppets
...a Zaidi Shia insurgent group operating in Yemen. They have also been referred to as the
Believing Youth. Hussein Badreddin al-Houthi is said to be the spiritual leader of the group and most of the military leaders are his relatives. The legitimate Yemeni government has accused the them of having ties to the Iranian government. Honest they did. The group has managed to gain control over all of Saada Governorate and parts of Amran, Al Jawf and Hajjah Governorates. Its slogan is
God is Great, Death to Americaâ„¢, Death to Israel, a curse on the JewsThey like shooting off... ummm... missiles that they would have us believe they make at home in their basements. On the plus side, they did murder Ali Abdullah Saleh, which was the only way the country was ever going to be rid of him...
rebels, government officials said Wednesday.
The push in the southern province of Shabwa comes amid heavy
...
KABOOM!...
s by the Saudi-led coalition battling the Houthis elsewhere in Yemen, including the capital of Sanaa.
The rebels have also stepped up their cross-border attacks, using ballistic missiles and explosive-laden drones to target Saudi Arabia
...a kingdom taking up the bulk of the Arabian peninsula. Its primary economic activity involves exporting oil and soaking Islamic rubes on the annual hajj pilgrimage. The country supports a large number of princes in whatcha might call princely splendor. Fifteen of the nineteen WTC hijackers were Saudis, and most major jihadi commanders were Saudis, to include Osama bin Laden. Crown Prince Mohammed bin Salman quietly folded that tent in 2016, doing terrible things to the guys running it, and has since been dragging the kingdom into the current century...The Houthis recently also seized an Emirati ship in the Red Sea off the contested city of Hodeida.
A Yemeni military front man, Mohammed al-Naqib, said the troops' advance in Shabwa aims to cut supply lines for the Houthis who have been attacking the key city of Marib, the last government stronghold in northern Yemen, since early last year.
Government troops, aided by allied Giants Bridges, swept through Shabwa earlier this month, retaking most of the Usailan district from the Houthis. al-Naqib said they also pushed through the nearby Bayhan district, retaking several villages.
A front man for the rebels did not answer phone calls seeking comment. A Houthi media office said the Saudi-led coalition launched dozens of airstrikes on the rebels in Usailan and Bayhan.
Fighting has also escalated since November around the city of Hodeida, in a setback to the UN-brokered cease-fire in 2018 that ended fighting over the strategic port.
The Saudi-led coalition on Tuesday called for the Houthis to release the Emirati ship Rwabee, warning that it would attack ports used by the rebels to seize the vessel, a move that would likely further undermine the cease-fire in Hodeida.
UN front man Stephane Dujarric said the United Nations
...a lucrative dumping ground for the relatives of dictators and party hacks...
was following ``with concern'' reports of the vessel's seizure ``in what the Houthis have described as Yemeni waters.''
The rebels, meanwhile, accused the Saudi-led coalition Wednesday of preventing a fuel vessel from entering Hodeida despite receiving UN clearances.
Essam al-Mutawakel, the front man for rebel-run Yemen Petroleum Company, said the coalition diverted Splendour Sapphire to the Saudi city of Jizan. He said the ship carries 24,189 tons of mazut, a low-quality fuel oil.
There was no immediate comment from the coalition.