Sanaa: Yemeni armed forces and Zaidi Shiite
rebels fought a fierce battle on Monday in the rugged Malahidh
area near the border with Saudi Arabia, an army spokesman said
in Sanaa.
"Violent fighting was taking place in the middle of the
day on the Malahidh front after the army took total control of
Jebel Khazaen," in the north of the Malahidh region, spokesman
Askar Zuail told a news agency.
Malahidh, in the west of hilly Saada province, stronghold
of the rebellion, has been a key battleground since the army
launched its "Operation Scorched Earth" against the rebels on
August 11.
The region borders Saudi Arabia, which joined in the
north Yemen conflict following the death of one of its
soldiers in a November 3 skirmish with Zaidi rebels on Jebel
al-Dukhan mountain.
The Yemeni side of Jebel al-Dukhan is within the Malahidh
district.
The Yemeni Defence Ministry said on Monday said that the
army regained control of several hills in the Gharaz area
southeast of Saada and cleared them landmines.
Three rebels were arrested in army assaults in Saada,
around 240 kilometres north of Sanaa, and two more in Aleb, a
frontier post north of Saada, the ministry said on its
website.
Bureau Report
