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Houthi-Saleh Militias Collapse in Taiz, New Locations Liberated in Mocha | ASHARQ AL-AWSAT English Archive 2005 -2017
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Southern People’s Resistance militants loyal to Yemen’s President Abd-Rabbu Mansour Hadi move a tank from the al-Anad air base in the country’s southern province of Lahej March 24, 2015. REUTERS/Stringer


Taiz- Making new advances, Yemen’s army units announced freeing new locations at the key coastal area of Mocha from the control of coup militias and that were packed by Iran-aligned Houthis.

Located in the Taiz governorate, Mocha city has long been exploited by militants to smuggle arms. Coup militias are chiefly composed of Iran-aligned Houthis and armed loyalists fighting by the side of ousted president Ali Abdullah Saleh.

Backed by Saudi-led Arab Coalition airpower, pro-government forces took a forceful push into putschists’ enclave in the Hodeidah Governorate.

Advances were seen across institutional complexes, Mocha’s eastern security district—areas put under pro-government control now undergo extensive mine sweeps, military sources said.

Army units revealed that, backed by coalition airstrikes, militia locations in eastern Mocha city were targeted. It is also worth mentioning that earlier this week the strategic port was announced fully liberated from the coup upperhand alongside a number of eastern city areas.

Early January, in cooperation with the Saudi-led coalition, pro-government forces launched a military offensive called ‘Al-Romh al-Thahabi’ –Arabic for Golden Spear-, in an effort to liberate the national western coastline.

Progress in Taiz- achieved after fierce street-to-street battles- and Al-Baidaa province has also been reported. The Yemeni army is now in control of most of the eastern coast, which has been an entry route for smuggling Iranian artillery to Houthi insurgents.

Coup militias in Taiz currently experience an overall collapse among ranks, as it continues to experience defeat facing army forces backed by heavy coalition air power featuring Apache helicopters.

More so, Apache helicopters flew on Thursday night bombing militia-run sites in the Yemeni border mountains of Tawr al-Hashim.

The militias had situated themselves in these mountains to carry out armed attacks on the Saudi border town of Najran.

Military sources reported that the militias began their attack by launching thermal missiles as well as mortars on Saudi military sites and some populated areas.