Pro-government forces stationed in the Al-Jab area, northwest of Al-Dhale province, thwarted an attempted advance by the Ansar Allah (Houthi) group, local sources said on Tuesday.
The attack happened early Tuesday. The Houthi fighters stationed north of Sira town launched an artillery bombardment, followed by a foot attack towards the western sector of the Al-Jab military camp. However, the government forces foiled the attack, according to the sources.
The sources indicated that the Houthi fighters brought reinforcements from Ibb province before the attack. When the clashes began, they used medium and light weapons, including mortar shells and RPG shells, to penetrate the fortifications of government forces, but they encountered heavy resistance and were forced to retract. The number of deaths and injuries from both sides remains unknown.
The Houthi group, who toppled Yemen’s UN-recognized government in 2015, controls some areas of Dhale, a southern province, including Damt and Juban and parts of Qataba district. Most of the province districts are under the control of the southern separatists.
This bout of fighting occurs despite the ongoing Saudi-Houthi direct peace talks. On Thursday, a Houthi team of negotiators arrived in Riyadh accompanied by an Omani delegation. Several countries, including the United States, praised this breakthrough, saying it will pave the way for peace in Yemen.
Yemen’s former Minister of Human Rights in the UN-recognized government, Muhammad Askar, said the Saudi-Houthi negotiations will be futile if they do not meet the aspirations of the Yemeni people. He said on the X platform, “If the [talks] are to wash away crimes and human rights violations, I do not think it meets the aspirations of the Yemenis and will not achieve any justice or accountability, let alone the desired lasting peace.”
Late last week, Yemen’s House of Representatives said peace remains distant if the negotiations on ending the conflict ignore the three references for stopping the war in Yemen.
The three references are the Gulf Initiative and its executive mechanism, the outcomes of the National Dialogue Conference, and UN Security Council resolutions, especially Resolution 2216.