Though Yemeni officials announced earlier that ground troops from the Saudi-led coalition landed in the port city of Yemen on a recon mission, Saudi Arabia insists this does not mark the beginning of a “major” mission.
Whether this amounts to a denial for those ground troops is unclear, as Saudi officials followed the denial of a “major” offensive by saying that they would not comment on whether there were special forces in Aden.
Aden has been a site of major clashes between the Shi’ite Houthi militia and fighters loyal to the former Yemeni government, who are being armed by the Saudis.
An unspecified number of Yemeni fighters trained by the Saudi coalition were also said to have docked in Aden to join the battle.
Saudi Arabia has massed large numbers of ground troops at their border with Yemen, and clashed in recent days with Houthi fighters along the border. Airstrikes have mostly focused on major cities along the west coast, while Saudi officials have said in recent days they were undecided on a ground operation.