SANAA, Aug. 7 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's Houthi group said Friday it launched a large-scale missile and drone attack on a major government military camp in the oil-rich northeastern province of Marib, as a sharp escalation in hostilities left soldiers and civilians killed or wounded.
Houthi military spokesperson Yahya Sarea said in a social media statement that the group targeted government troops, weapons depots, vehicles and military equipment at the Sahn al-Jinn camp near Marib city with "a large number of missiles and drones."
Sarea said the operation followed what the Houthis described as the detection of Saudi-backed military mobilization and reinforcements in the area, alleging that Saudi Arabia was preparing for military actions.
Four government soldiers were killed and four others wounded when a Houthi drone struck pro-government forces in Harib district in southern Marib, a military official told Xinhua, who spoke on condition of anonymity.
Missile and drone attacks were also reported in other government-controlled areas of Marib on Friday.
The latest developments followed a wave of Houthi strikes a day earlier against Saudi-backed government forces in Marib and neighboring Hadramout.
On Thursday, Sarea said Houthi ballistic missiles and drones had struck military camps and troop gatherings in the two provinces, claiming that "hundreds" of government personnel had been killed or wounded.
Marib, a province rich in oil and natural gas, was one of the most fiercely contested areas during Yemen's civil war. It remains a key stronghold of the internationally recognized government.
Yemen has been mired in conflict since late 2014, when the Houthis seized much of northern Yemen, including the capital Sanaa, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene in 2015 in support of the Yemeni government.
A UN-brokered truce took effect in April 2022, and expired in October that year without a formal extension, but a fragile de facto ceasefire has largely held since then, despite sporadic clashes, shelling and drone attacks along several front lines. ■
