Yemini army claims killing 28 Houthi rebels in shelling, air strikes

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Yemini army claims killing 28 Houthi rebels in shelling, air strikes

Sinai: A chain of air strikes and shellings by Saudi led coalition resulted in the death of at least 28 Houthi fighters on Monday in the northwestern Hajjah province near the Saudi border, according to the Yemeni army.

"Meanwhile, the [Saudi-led] Arab air coalition at noon the same day targeted a number of Houthi concentrations in the Hiran directorate of Hajjah province, killing at least 20," the statement added without elaborating.

Houthi spokesmen, for their part, have yet to comment on the army’s assertions.

Yemen has remained in a state of civil war since 2014, when Houthi rebels and forces loyal to former President Ali Abdullah Saleh overran capital Sanaa and other parts of the country.

The conflict escalated in 2015 when Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies launched a wide-ranging air campaign aimed at reversing Houthi military gains and shoring up Yemen’s Saudi-backed government