Yemeni army forces, backed by allied Popular Committees loyal to the Houthi Ansarullah movement, have killed a Saudi prince during an attack in the oil-rich province of Ma’rib in central Yemen, a report says.
Amir Mohammad bin Mosa’ed bin Jalawi, an assistant inspector general, and his comrades were killed when Yemeni forces targeted them in the al-Hajar region, Sa’ada Press news website reported on Friday.
This comes after Houthi Ansarullah fighter killed several mercenaries fighting on Saudi Arabia’s behalf and militants loyal to Yemen’s fugitive former President Abd Rabbuh Mansur Hadi in the same region.
In a separate development, Yemeni forces captured at least 48 Emirati soldiers, including nine military officers during a series of clashes in the northern province of al-Jawf.
Over 130 militants were also captured during the fierce fighting, Yemen’s Arabic-language al-Ahd news agency reported.
Several Yemeni civilians have lost their lives over the past three days as Saudi warplanes continue to pound areas across Yemen.
On Wednesday, leader of Yemen’s Ansarullah movement Abdul-Malik al-Houthi lashed out at Saudi Arabia, saying the kingdom’s policies are the same as those of the US and Israel, “which seek to crush the Muslim Ummah without paying any price.”
On March 26, Saudi Arabia started deadly military aggression against Yemen in a bid to undermine the Houthi Ansarullah movement and restore power to Hadi, a staunch ally of Riyadh.
More than 7,500 people have been killed and over 14,000 others injured since March. The strikes have also taken a heavy toll on the impoverished country’s facilities and infrastructure, destroying many hospitals, schools, and factories.
The UN has repeatedly voiced concern over the rising number of civilian casualties in the Saudi military aggression against Yemen.