The Houthis (Ansar Allah) captured 37 positions in the northern Yemeni province of al-Jawf from the Saudi-led coalition and its proxies during a large-scale military operation, which was secretly launched earlier this month, a spokesman for the Yemeni group revealed on August 7.
“The operation was conducted by special units from different sectors, from the al-Samad Brigades, the al-Amaliqa’s 29th Mechanized Brigade and the 145th Infantry Brigade,” said Brig. Gen. Yahya Sari.
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A video of the offensive, codenamed “Operation Loyalty To the Martyrs,” was released by the Houthis’ media wing on August 7. The video shows Houthi fighters storming several Saudi-held positions in the key district of Khabb Wa al-Sha’af.
According to Brig. Gen. Sari, more than 41 Saudi-backed fighters and commanders were killed in the course of the operation. More than 24 vehicles of the Saudi-led coalition were also destroyed by the Houthis.
The Saudi-led coalition failed to repel the Houthis’ offensive, despite its aerial superiority. This reveals a fatal problem in the coordination between the aerial and ground forces of the coalition.
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