ADEN, Yemen, Jan. 29 (Xinhua) -- A total of five members of the pro-government Yemeni forces were killed Saturday in a missile attack carried out by the Houthi militia against the country's oil-rich province of Shabwa, a military official told Xinhua.
"A gathering of the pro-government forces was struck by a Houthi missile attack in Usaylan district of Shabwa, leaving five soldiers killed and 11 others injured," the local military source said on condition of anonymity.
He said that the Houthi-fired missile landed near a military site of the pro-government Giants Brigades in Shabwa.
"The Houthis are using missiles to target the pro-government forces, which reclaimed key areas from the Houthis in Shabwa and Marib," he noted.
Meanwhile, the Houthi militia Spokesman Yehya Sarea said the missile attack killed and injured at least 40 soldiers.
On Thursday, the Houthi militia claimed responsibility for another ballistic missile attack on the province of Marib to the north of Shabwa, which killed seven people, according to government health officials.
The Houthi militia has recently intensified missile attacks on Shabwa and Marib after it had lost several strategic districts in both oil-rich provinces this month after deadly fighting against the government army.
The Houthi militia also launched more cross-border ballistic missile attacks on airports and facilities inside Saudi Arabia and the United Arab Emirates, the latter of which is a key member of a Saudi-led Arab coalition backing the Yemeni army. ■
