SANAA/CAIRO, Sept. 14 (Xinhua) -- Yemen's Houthi group said Monday that a Saudi airstrike hit a bridge in the southwestern province of Taiz, killing two people and wounding another as an escalating Saudi-Houthi confrontation brought further strikes across Yemen.
Houthi-run al-Masirah TV reported that an airstrike it attributed to Saudi forces hit the Al-Barah bridge in Maqbanah district, damaging the bridge and cutting traffic along the route.
Al-Masirah separately said three airstrikes it attributed to Saudi forces hit the strategic Red Sea port city of Mocha in Taiz on Monday, with no immediate word on casualties or damage.
Earlier Monday, the Houthis said they had launched dozens of ballistic missiles and drones at King Khalid Air Base in Khamis Mushait in southwestern Saudi Arabia, describing the attack as retaliation for more than 300 Saudi airstrikes they said had hit Houthi-controlled areas in Yemen in recent days.
The exchanges come amid a sweeping Houthi offensive launched on Sept. 3 that has redrawn front lines along Yemen's Red Sea coast, with the group seizing several government-held areas in the Red Sea province of Hodeidah and neighboring Taiz province.
The Houthis captured the strategic port city of Mocha on Sept. 10 before pushing south the next day into the Bab al-Mandab area and seizing Mayun Island at the heart of the strait, tightening their grip on the vital shipping chokepoint linking the Red Sea and Gulf of Aden.
Following the advance, the Houthis said international navigation through the strait remained "free, safe and smooth," while Saudi vessels remained subject to a maritime ban imposed by the group on July 20.
Separately, Egyptian Foreign Minister Badr Abdelatty and Deputy Prime Minister and Foreign Minister of the United Arab Emirates (UAE) Sheikh Abdullah bin Zayed Al Nahyan called for preserving the security and freedom of international navigation on Monday, according to an Egyptian Foreign Ministry statement.
In a phone call, the two ministers discussed the latest regional developments, particularly the situation in the Strait of Hormuz and developments in Yemen amid the recent escalation, underscoring the importance of overcoming the challenges facing the region and their repercussions on the security of the Red Sea and the Bab el-Mandeb Strait.
They stressed the need to respect international law, preserve the security and freedom of international navigation, and intensify efforts to contain tensions and prevent the conflict from spreading.
Yemen's conflict erupted in late 2014 when the Houthis seized Sanaa and much of northern Yemen, prompting a Saudi-led coalition to intervene in March 2015 in support of the internationally recognized government. ■
