Houthi violations – Yemen says 31 soldiers killed and injured
31 Yemeni army soldiers were killed and wounded in treacherous attacks and Houthi militia violations on seven main fronts.
The Yemeni army said that the Iranian-backed Houthi militias committed 277 violations of the UN truce within 48 hours on July 20-21 in the Hodeida, Taiz, Dhale, Hajjah, Saada, Al-Jawf and Marib fronts.
According to the statement, Houthi militias committed 151 violations on the western coast, 51 in Hajjah, 37 in Taiz, 24 in Marib, 7 in al-Jawf, 7 in Dhale and Saada.
The Yemeni army repelled two violent Houthi barrages in Dhale’s Maris and Ghorab in the city of Taiz, forcing the coup militias to retreat and flee.
According to the statement, violations and attacks by Houthi militias resulted in the death of 12 soldiers from the Yemeni army and the injury of 19 others on various fronts.
The Houthis used heavy artillery, BMP vehicles, snipers and aircraft loaded with explosives, in addition to militia activity in site construction, fortifications and the deployment of drones, the statement said.
Meanwhile, General Anthony Hayward, the military adviser to the UN Special Envoy for Yemen and head of the Military Coordination Committee, continues to discuss the military and security situation and challenges in preparation for holding new meetings of the ceasefire monitoring committee.
The UN military adviser is in Taiz to understand the security and military situation, the difficulties and challenges facing the province in general, and possible and proposed solutions, the official news agency Saba reported.
During a meeting with the governor of Taiz on Friday, Hayward stressed the pivotal role and importance of Taiz in discussing all Yemeni issues, the UN envoy’s attention to its suffering, exerting all efforts to open roads, facilitate freedom of movement, and address security and military challenges.
He also stressed the continued holding of meetings with all parties to continue to build confidence and explore and build on opportunities to strengthen the resilience of the truce and the continuation of peace entitlements.
Taiz governor Nabil Shamsan called for pressure on the Houthis to implement the proposals instead of continuing to offer alternatives and proposals that include new concessions to the Houthis without taking into consideration that the Yemeni government confirmed its commitment to the proposals and we are facing major societal demands to stop the suffering and open the roads to the truce.
The UN official expressed his regret that no progress was made to alleviate the suffering of the people of the province, calling for justice in humanitarian treatment under the truce.
Iran-backed Houthi militias have multiplied their violations, and the internationally recognized government says these are negative indicators that do not encourage the continuation of the truce that ends on August 2.
The Houthis are racing to exploit the humanitarian truce to plant mines, mobilize fighters, arrange their military ranks, and modernize their weapons arsenal by evading a new round of war, according to Yemeni experts.
