The Yemeni army, backed by the UAE air force, recaptured a number of strategic areas along the Red Sea coast from the Houthi rebels.
“The army succeeded in taking control of strategic highlands on the Red Sea Coast of Yemen, including the Al Khazan mountain, during a large-scale military operation,” reported the UAE state news agency, Wam, on Sunday.
This comes as part of a unified push to seize control of Yemen’s largest port city, Hodeidah, which has been under Houthi control since the rebels seized the capital in 2015.
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The UAE, as part of the Saudi-led Arab coalition, intervened in the Yemen war in 2015 to fight the Iran-backed rebels at the request of Yemeni President Abdrabu Mansur Hadi.
The report added that the Iran-backed Houthis “suffered heavy losses” during the Yemeni army’s push for Al Barah junction, a strategic crossroads along the coast.
Meanwhile, Yemeni Ambassador to the UAE Fahad Saeed Al Menhali praised the UAE’s role in fighting on behalf of Mr Hadi's internationally-recognised government.
“We have to remember with loyalty and gratitude the brave acts conducted by the Emirati soldiers which reflect their sacrifices on the Yemeni land,” said Ambassador Al Menhali.
“They are defending justice and legitimacy against the attempt to hijack the Yemeni state by the Iranian Houthi militias, and the right of the Yemeni people to live in peace and stability.''
