6 Yemen soldiers killed in Houthi drone attack on base

A drone attack on a Yemeni government base by the rebel Houthi movement has reportedly killed at least six soldiers and injured several senior officials.

A video appeared to show one drone exploding above al-Anad base, in Lahj province, during a military parade.

Sky News Arabia said army chief of staff Gen Abdullah al-Nakhi and Lahj governor Ahmed Abdullah were hurt.

A Houthi-run TV channel said the rebels had targeted personnel from the Saudi-led coalition backing the government.

The attack comes a day after the UN special envoy to Yemen said the warring parties had largely been adhering to a ceasefire agreed last month around the Red Sea port of Hudaydah, which is crucial to the delivery of aid supplies.

However, Martin Griffiths told the UN Security Council that substantial progress was needed before more peace talks could be held on ending the civil war.

Yemen has been devastated by a conflict that escalated in early 2015, when the Houthis seized control of much of the west of the country and forced President Abdrabbuh Mansour Hadi to flee abroad.

Alarmed by the rise of a group they saw as an Iranian proxy, the UAE, Saudi Arabia and seven other Arab states intervened in an attempt to restore the government. They have received logistical and intelligence support from the US, UK and France.

At least 6,800 civilians have been killed and 10,700 injured in the fighting, according to the UN. Thousands more civilians have died from preventable causes, including malnutrition, disease and poor health.

bbc.com

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