Brigadier General Yahya Sari, spokesman of the Yemeni Armed Forces
On December 5, Brigadier General Yahya Sari, a spokesman of the Yemeni Armed Forces [an ally of the Houthis], announced that the Houthis and their allies had repelled a large-scale attack by the Saudi-led coalition and its proxies on their positions in the district of Nihm in the central Yemeni province of Sanaa.
“The enemy [Saudi-led coalition] attempted to advance, from morning until noon, towards the positions of the army and the popular committees [military wing of the Houthis] in three directions. The first towards Yam, al-Dbuah, al-Azimah, al-Salta and al-Barik, the second towards al-Tibah al-Sawdah, al-Ansab and al-Qarn, and the third towards Tibab Ayash,” Brig. Gen. Sari said in an official press release.
Saudi-led coalition warplanes supported the attack and conducted dozens of airstrikes on positions of the Houthis in Nihm. The coalition artillery also pounded the district. However, the strikes were ineffective.
According to Brig. Gen. Sari, more than 55 personnel of the Saudi-led coalition were killed during the failed advance attempt. The casualties included several Sudanese soldiers and a local commander, Khalid Ali al-Qardai.
After repelling the large-scale attack, a Qasef-1 armed unmanned aerial vehicle (UAV) of the Yemeni Air Force [loyal to the Houthis] carried out a series of airstrikes on gatherings of Saudi-led coalition troops in Nihm.
“The aerial attack achived direct hits in the gatherings of the mercenaries [Saudi-backed Yemeni fighters],” a source in the Yemeni Air Force told al-Masirah TV.
The Saudi-led coalition has stepped up its operations against the Houthis in Sanaa after announcing a humanitarian ceasefire in the western city of al-Hudaydah earlier this month in what appears to be an attempt to pressure the Yemeni group ahead of the upcoming negotiations in Sweden.
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