45 Houthis Killed in Saudi Airstrikes, Clash in Yemen’s Maarib

Military claims to have repelled latest Houthi offensive

Yemeni military sources are claiming to have once again repelled a Houthi offensive against the city of Maarib, and between intense fighting around the city and a series of Saudi-led airstrikes, to have killed at least 45 Houthis, destroying several vehicles.

Officials said that the Houthis attacked Maarib on three different fronts, and that the Saudi strikes hit a “makeshift operational room” the Houthis had set up, then bombed vehicles further south.

Maarib is the last government-held city in northern Yemen, and the Houthis have been pushing hard for months to take that. The fighting is mostly in Maarib, and due south in Houthi-held Bayda, with both sides trying to make gains in either, and mostly just putting up large body counts.

There have been efforts, particularly by Oman, to get peace talks going, but both sides seem to be dragging their feet, likely hoping that if they take control over some of the contested territory first they can go into the talks with momentum.

Author: Jason Ditz

Jason Ditz is Senior Editor for Antiwar.com. He has 20 years of experience in foreign policy research and his work has appeared in The American Conservative, Responsible Statecraft, Forbes, Toronto Star, Minneapolis Star-Tribune, Providence Journal, Washington Times, and the Detroit Free Press.