Yemeni Army Thwarts Houthi Advances in Marib

Yemenis shop at a market in Sanaa ahead of Eid al-Fitr next week. (AFP)
Yemenis shop at a market in Sanaa ahead of Eid al-Fitr next week. (AFP)
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Yemeni Army Thwarts Houthi Advances in Marib

Yemenis shop at a market in Sanaa ahead of Eid al-Fitr next week. (AFP)
Yemenis shop at a market in Sanaa ahead of Eid al-Fitr next week. (AFP)

The Yemeni army, backed by tribal fighters and air cover from the Saudi-led Arab coalition, thwarted on Monday several attacks by the Iran-backed Houthi militias in western Marib, Yemeni military sources said.

The militias have been pursuing an offensive in Marib for four months now in an attempt to capture the oil-rich northern province from the legitimate government.

The development revealed that tribes in Marib, al-Jawf and nearby provinces have met the rallying call of the local authorities to support the army to push back the Houthis, added the sources.

As the Houthis intensified their attacks on the al-Kasara and al-Mashajah fronts, coalition jets intensified their strikes on militia positions in the Sirwah district, said military media.

Dozens of militants were killed and injured in the raids.

A military spokesman confirmed that the military has achieved victories on several fronts in Marib, Taiz, al-Dhale, Saada, al-Bayda, Hodeidah and Lahj.

In Marib, the people are supporting the army and national resistance’s perseverance to end the Houthi coup and their terrorist acts, he added.

The military and popular resistance have continued to make advances on the ground, thwarting all Houthi attacks and attempted infiltrations on the Sirwah, al-Kasara, Hilan, al-Moshaja, al-Makhadra and al-Jadaan fronts.

The Houthis are incurring dozens of losses every day on these fronts, he stressed. They are also losing weapons, equipment and armored vehicles, which are being seized by the army.

He said that the al-Kasara and al-Mashajah fronts in western Marib are witnessing the fiercest battles, with the military dealing the militias heavy losses.

The Houthis, meanwhile, have continued their ballistic missile attacks against civilians and refugees in the province. They are also continuing their sniper attacks and shelling of Hodeidah.

Several civilians, including women and children, have been wounded by sniper fire, in attacks that are tantamount to war crimes, charged the spokesman.



US, Arab Mediators Make Some Progress in Gaza Peace Talks, No Deal Yet

Palestinians inspect damaged residential buildings where two Israeli hostages were reportedly held before being rescued during an operation by Israeli security forces in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, on Feb. 12, 2024. (AP)
Palestinians inspect damaged residential buildings where two Israeli hostages were reportedly held before being rescued during an operation by Israeli security forces in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, on Feb. 12, 2024. (AP)
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US, Arab Mediators Make Some Progress in Gaza Peace Talks, No Deal Yet

Palestinians inspect damaged residential buildings where two Israeli hostages were reportedly held before being rescued during an operation by Israeli security forces in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, on Feb. 12, 2024. (AP)
Palestinians inspect damaged residential buildings where two Israeli hostages were reportedly held before being rescued during an operation by Israeli security forces in Rafah, southern Gaza Strip, on Feb. 12, 2024. (AP)

US and Arab mediators have made some progress in their efforts to reach a ceasefire accord between Israel and Hamas in Gaza, but not enough to seal a deal, Palestinian sources close to the talks said on Thursday.
As talks continued in Qatar, the Israeli military carried out strikes across the enclave, killing at least 17 people, Palestinian medics said.
Qatar, the US and Egypt are making a major push to reach a deal to halt fighting in the 15-month conflict and free remaining hostages held by the Hamas group before President Joe Biden leaves office.
President-elect Donald Trump has warned there will be "hell to pay", if the hostages are not released by his inauguration on Jan. 20.
On Thursday, a Palestinian official close to the mediation effort said the absence of a deal so far did not mean the talks were going nowhere and said this was the most serious attempt so far to reach an accord.
"There are extensive negotiations, mediators and negotiators are talking about every word and every detail. There is a breakthrough when it comes to narrowing old existing gaps but there is no deal yet," he told Reuters, without giving further details.
On Tuesday, Israeli Foreign Ministry Director General Eden Bar-Tal said Israel was fully committed to reaching an agreement to return its hostages from Gaza but faces obstruction from Hamas.
The two sides have been at an impasse for a year over two key issues. Hamas has said it will only free its remaining hostages if Israel agrees to end the war and withdraw all its troops from Gaza. Israel says it will not end the war until Hamas is dismantled and all hostages are free.
SEVERE HUMANITARIAN CRISIS
On Thursday, the death toll from Israel's military strikes included eight Palestinians killed in a house in Jabalia, the largest of Gaza's eight historic refugee camps, where Israeli forces have operated for more than three months. Nine others, including a father and his three children, died in two separate airstrikes on two houses in central Gaza Strip, health officials said.
There was no Israeli military comment on the two incidents.
More than 46,000 people have been killed in the Gaza war, according to Palestinian health officials. Much of the enclave has been laid waste and most of the territory's 2.1 million people have been displaced multiple times and face acute shortages of food and medicine, humanitarian agencies say.
Israel denies hindering humanitarian relief to Gaza and says it has facilitated the distribution of hundreds of truckloads of food, water, medical supplies and shelter equipment to warehouses and shelters over the past week.
Israel launched its assault on Gaza after Hamas fighters stormed southern Israel on Oct. 7, 2023, killing 1,200 people and capturing more than 250 hostages, according to Israeli tallies. On Wednesday, the Israeli military said troops had recovered the body of Israeli Bedouin hostage Youssef Al-Ziyadna, along with evidence that was still being examined suggesting his son Hamza, taken on the same day, may also be dead.
"We will continue to make every effort to return all of our hostages, the living and the deceased," Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said in a statement.