Yemen's Iran-backed Houthis launched a three-pronged offensive in northern Lahj province on Friday, seeking to push toward the Tur Al-Bahah district and gain fire control over strategic routes linking Lahj and Taiz.
The escalation came as Yemen's armed forces held their ground on the southern and western fronts around Taiz city and stepped up air and ground strikes against Houthi positions there, along the western coast and in the eastern provinces of Al-Jawf and Marib.
Government forces also raised concerns over reports that the Houthis had fired shells suspected of containing toxic substances, causing choking and fainting among civilians and fighters.
The armed forces said they had carried out 1,087 successful strikes under Operation Dawn of Yemen, deploying fighter jets, drones, artillery and rocket launchers. The military said the strikes had neutralized about 336 Houthi commanders and fighters and destroyed or disabled 112 military vehicles, pieces of equipment, supply assets and heavy weapons.
Local sources reported fierce fighting in Lahj's Al-Maqatirah district after the Houthis attacked from three directions in a bid to seize the district and open a route toward Tur Al-Bahah.
Al-Maqatirah's strategic importance lies in its commanding position over key roads and areas stretching across southern Taiz and northern Lahj.
The assault coincided with sporadic clashes along the Taiz-Lahj administrative boundary, particularly on the Al-Mudaribah front, amid reports of fresh Houthi reinforcements. Field sources said the group had also deployed additional forces to Al-Shamayatayn district in southern Taiz.
In Taiz, government troops clashed with Houthi fighters in Al-Shaqab, southeast of the city, as government drones struck Houthi positions and troop concentrations. Sporadic clashes also erupted on the city's western fronts before dawn.
Further west, government artillery struck a Houthi gathering at the Khalid bin Al-Walid area in Al-Dhabab. Field reports indicated casualties among fighters stationed there.
On the western coast, airstrikes hit Al-Amoud Al-Sughra in Mokha district before dawn, targeting Houthi positions and military movements along the coastline.
The air campaign also reached Al-Jawf and Marib, with two strikes targeting Huwayshan in Al-Jawf and another hitting Mahliyah district in Marib.
Toxic shells raise alarm
Yemen's armed forces said they were treating with utmost seriousness reports that Houthi fighters had used shells suspected of containing toxic substances on the Taiz fronts, amid accounts of civilians and Popular Resistance fighters suffering choking and fainting.
Colonel Majed Al-Nuzaili, the armed forces' official spokesperson, called for an urgent investigation to identify the suspected substances, document their effects and trace their origins and suppliers.
In a statement, Al-Nuzaili said the incidents formed part of a continuing Houthi escalation against Taiz residents, including sniper attacks, indiscriminate shelling of residential areas, a siege, road closures and restrictions on access to water, food, medicine and life-saving supplies.
The armed forces warned the Houthis against further attacks on civilians or the use of prohibited means of warfare.
They said protecting civilians and breaking the siege of Taiz remained core responsibilities of the state and its armed forces, pledging to take necessary measures in line with constitutional obligations and international humanitarian law.
The statement urged the United Nations and relevant international bodies to help deter violations, support an urgent investigation into the suspected toxic shells and press for roads to reopen to allow humanitarian aid and essential supplies to reach civilians unhindered.
The military also vowed that those behind attacks on civilians, including the commanders responsible, would face accountability and punishment.
