Yemeni armed forces launch multi-front operation against Houthis; warn against further escalation

Aden [Yemen], August 8 (ANI): The Yemeni Armed Forces announced on Saturday that they carried out a broad military operation targeting Houthi positions along multiple frontlines, framing the strikes as a direct response to recent offensive actions by the militia in the Marib and Hadramout governorates.
Speaking in an address carried by state broadcaster Yemen TV, Armed Forces Spokesperson Colonel Majed Al-Nuzaili stated that the operation was launched under "the legitimate right of the Yemeni Armed Forces to defend their security and the security of their heroic members, and to protect unarmed civilians from the treacherous and repeated terrorist attacks carried out by the terrorist Houthi militia."
Al-Nuzaili noted that recent Houthi attacks had caused casualties among military personnel and civilians, prompting a coordinated counter-offensive across several combat axes.
"Our armed forces have carried out a military operation against the forces and capabilities belonging to the Houthi militia and its terrorist elements on several axes along the lines of contact with our armed forces," Al-Nuzaili said, adding that the action demonstrated "the unity of command and control of our armed forces."
Issuing a stern warning against further military escalation, the spokesperson emphasised that any attack against a single sector would be treated as an assault on all government-aligned units nationwide.
"We emphasise that aggression against any front or axis is considered aggression against all fronts and axes belonging to our armed forces with all their formations and heroic personnel," he stated.
Addressing the public, Al-Nuzaili appealed to Yemeni tribes and citizens to unite behind government forces to restore state institutions, accusing the Houthi militia of "looting its resources and wealth, the imposition of illegal levies, the tearing apart of its economy, and plunging the nation into regional conflicts for external agendas."
In closing, the military spokesperson held the Houthi movement and its backers fully accountable for ongoing hostilities, warning that future attacks would draw firm military retaliation under the direction of the country's political and military leadership, the statement shared by Yemen TV highlighted.
"Any targeting of our units will not go without a response. We will deal with any new aggression with the necessary and decisive military procedures," Al-Nuzaili concluded.
Earlier on Friday, a Houthi missile and drone attack on Yemeni government forces killed 18 security personnel, including an officer, and injured several others, according to Yemen's army.
The army said 17 soldiers and one officer were killed in the assault, which involved ballistic missiles and drones. Several other personnel sustained injuries in the attack, Al Jazeera reported.
The attack comes amid escalating hostilities in the region, with the Iran-aligned Houthi group intensifying both military operations inside Yemen and attacks on maritime targets linked to Saudi Arabia.
On Thursday, the Houthis claimed they had "successfully" carried out a ballistic missile strike on the Saudi oil tanker Daisy in the Gulf of Aden.In a statement posted on Telegram, the group said the vessel was hit and forced to change course.
In a statement posted on Telegram, the group said the vessel was hit and forced to change course.
The group said the strike formed part of what it described as a maritime blockade against Saudi Arabia through the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait. (ANI)