Houthi, Govt clashes flare in Yemen

Clashes between Iran-backed Houthi rebels and Government forces in Yemen raged overnight on Thursday as renewed violence continues to spread and feed growing fears that the country's civil war could reignite and create a new front in the West Asia war.

At least one Government soldier was killed and another critically wounded in clashes between Houthi rebels and the military in the mountainous province of Taiz, Yemeni military officials said.

He fighting came as part of a spate of recent attacks by the Houthis on Government-held areas across the country. Dozens of government troops have been killed in attacks since last week, the Yemeni military said. Elsewhere, several tribal leaders in the central province of Marib said the Yemeni army's artillery targeted overnight Houthi movements.

The Houthis have been hitting Government-held areas with drones and missiles, saying they have been targeting military forces and warehouses. They have also been attacking oil facilities in neighbouring Saudi Arabia, which supports the Yemeni Government, and the kingdom's shipping in the Red Sea. On Tuesday, they hit a commercial ship in the Bab el-Mandeb strait, killing six people. With the Strait of Hormuz effectively shut down by Iran, there has been a renewed focus on the Red Sea and Bab el-Mandeb strait at Yemen’s southern tip, which is an alternate route for Saudi Arabia to ship its oil.

Three Pakistanis were among the dead in the ship attack, and Indonesia's Foreign Ministry said Thursday that one of its nationals was missing after the attack and two were wounded.

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