A man stands by a relative, injured in clashes between government forces and Houthi fighters near Hodeidah, Yemen June 15, 2018. REUTERS/Abduljabbar Zeyad
June 16, 2018
ADEN (Reuters) – Forces from an Arab alliance entered the airport in Yemen’s main port city of Hodeidah on Saturday, the media office of the Yemeni military allied with the Saudi- and United Arab Emirates-led coalition said.
Control of the airport would be an important early success for the coalition fighting to seize the country’s largest port from the Iran-aligned Houthis, in the biggest battle of a three-year war.
“Army forces backed by the resistance and the Arab alliance freed Hodeidah international airport from the grip of the Houthi militia,” the media office said on Twitter on Saturday.
A source with the coalition-backed Yemeni military said troops had surrounded the main airport building.
“We need some time to make sure there are no gunmen, mines or explosive in the building,” the source said.
The media office said technical teams were de-mining the surrounding area.
The Western-backed alliance led by Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates says it can swiftly capture the port, the only one the Houthis control, without major disruption to aid supplies in a country already experiencing the world’s most pressing humanitarian crisis.
The United Nations, which struggled but failed to find a diplomatic path to head off the assault, fears the fighting will cut off the only lifeline for most Yemenis.
Around 22 million people in Yemen depend on the humanitarian aid efforts, with 8.4 million at risk of starvation.
(Reporting by Mohammed Ghobari in Aden and Ghaida Ghantous in Dubai; Editing by Tom Hogue)
