UAE soldier was killed in Najran & 7 elements killed in explosion

The General Command of the UAE Armed Forces announced Thursday that an Emirati soldier was killed while taking part in the Saudi-led Operation Restoring Hope in Yemen. Corporal Saeed Matar Al-Khaabi was martyred in Najran area, southwest Saudi Arabia, while performing his national duty, UAE's WAM news agency reported, citing a military statement.

 The General Command of the UAE Armed Forces offered its deepest condolences to the martyr's family, praying to Allah Almighty to rest the martyr's soul in eternal peace.

“All roads lead to Saada” was the slogan the Yemeni army raised as they continue to make advances at the border governorate of al-Jawf, a Houthi stronghold. Military sources confirmed that the recent advances made by the Yemeni army against the Houthi militias will enable them to join the front in Saada.

This will further tighten the grip on the Houthis who left the province towards Sanaa to control the capital with their ally, ousted President Ali Abdullah Saleh. Since taking control of the capital, the Houthis and their allies lost large areas that were under their control in Yemen.

A Yemeni army officer and nine Houthi fighters were killed Thursday in clashes that erupted in the town of Asilan in Yemen’s southeastern Shabwah province, according to a Yemeni military source.

“Houthi militiamen launched a major attack at dawn Thursday on Yemeni army positions in Asilan, prompting fierce clashes,” a Yemeni army colonel told Anadolu Agency.

“Government forces and members of the [pro-government] popular resistance committees ultimately managed to repulse the attackers,” he said, preferring anonymity for security reasons.

The attack, he added, had left one army officer dead -- Colonel Al-Khader al-Jadani -- and two “popular resistance” volunteers injured.

According to the same source, at least nine Houthi fighters were killed in the fighting.

Spokesmen for the Houthis have yet to comment on the source’s assertions.

Yemen’s Shabwah province is comprised of 17 districts, 15 of which are currently held by government forces while much of the province’s Bihan directorate and parts of Asilan remain under the control of the Houthis and their allies.

Yemen has remained locked in a civil war since 2014, when the Shia Houthi militia group overran much of the country including capital Sanaa, forcing Yemen’s Saudi-backed government to set up an interim capital in the coastal city of Aden. In 2015, Saudi Arabia and its Arab allies began a devastating air campaign aimed at rolling back Houthi military gains in Yemen.

According to UN figures, more than 10,000 people -- including numerous civilians -- have been killed as a direct result of the conflict.